Tennessee-Ball State: Vols double number of wide receivers with receptions from 2021 opener
Tennessee (1-0) kicked off its 2022 season Thursday against Ball State at Neyland Stadium.
The Vols defeated Ball State (0-1), 59-10.
Following the contest, second-year head coach Josh Heupel discussed wanting more wide receivers in rotation and their performance.
“The guys have proven that they earned the right to have more opportunities than they did a year ago,” Heupel said. “Last year on week one, we were still finding out a lot about our football team. We are this year too, but there is a lot known. A year into it, there are more guys that understand offensively what we are doing and the why behind it. They are understanding how to execute and operate efficiently. There is a lot that goes into the tempo that we run with.
“We have young guys that came in mid-year that have proven and earned the right. We are a deeper football team than we were a year ago. There are going to be a lot of things we need to correct, going back and watching the football game.”
2022 Vols’ football: Discussing Tennessee doubling its receiving stats from 2021
Four wide receivers (Jalin Hyatt, Cedric Tillman, JaVonta Payton, Grant Frerking) recorded receptions for Tennessee against Bowling Green in Heupel’s first game as head coach last season.
Eight wide receivers recorded receptions for the Vols against Ball State in year No. 2 of Heupel’s offense.
Below are Tennessee’s wide receivers and the number of receptions recorded against Ball State.
Cedric Tillman: 6
Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Jimmy Holiday: 4
Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Ramel Keyton: 4
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Bru McCoy: 3
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Squirrel White: 3
Photo by Dan Harralson, Vols Wire
Jalin Hyatt: 2
Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Walker Merrill: 2
Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Jack Jancek: 1
Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
