University of Tennessee Athletics
'Neyland Stadium is going to be packed'
September 13, 2008 | Football
Sept. 13, 2008
BY Jonathan Crompton, For SN Today
We're all anxious and ready to go after having an off week. That's the mentality of our team. We want to get back out there and prove ourselves to everybody, but even more so to ourselves, because we know what we're capable of doing.
One of the things we've been working on is a moving pocket. We're going to call some more bootlegs and springouts--not a whole lot more, but enough to give me a run-pass option. That way, I can run if needed, and keep us out of third-and-longs. Those are hard to convert, especially when the defense likes to blitz. But if we move the pocket, we can get an advantage. If the pass isn't there, I can run a few yards and then get out of bounds or get down--keep it smart, and keep the down and distance normal for us.
I'm a pocket quarterback, so I want to throw first. But part of being a quarterback is improvising on the run. So if something goes wrong and you have to run, you tuck it and run.
Another thing we've worked on in practice is our tempo. We're trying to get our tempo to what it was back in training camp. Don't get me wrong, we didn't have any issues with effort against UCLA, but we want to keep the tempo of the game at our pace, play faster. In practice, we've been using a game clock, and the coaches are making sure we get the play off in a certain amount of time, less than the 40 seconds.
With this being the home opener, everyone is excited about this weekend. The fan support we have here is great. Neyland Stadium is going to be packed, and we're going to have some guys back from the '98 national championship team. We want to show those guys what we're made of. That's the reason why you come here--you want to be in the national spotlight. Everyone knows Tennessee and looks for us on their schedule. That's one of the fun parts about being here. You know there's a target on your back here, but that's why you come.
-- As told to Benson Taylor
Other Crompton diary segments:
OT loss to UCLA was hard way to start season
Tennessee vs. UCLA: 'The whole country is going to be watching'
My summer vacation
