Tennessee football needs wide receiver threat from the transfer portal

On December 22, 2024By Littum

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Bru McCoy settled into a pocket on Tennessee’s football side Saturday and intercepted a Nico Iamaleava pass.

The play reached 21 yards when the senior wide receiver toppled into his teammates. It was the only passing play that gained more than 20 yards for the Vols, who never mounted anything resembling an aerial threat against Ohio State.

“The whole bottom line of the whole night is we didn’t stretch them enough,” Vols offensive coordinator Joey Halzle said. “We didn’t force them to respect that we followed them enough to make them change what they were doing.”

It wasn’t just a Saturday number. It was a season-long offensive anchor that hung around all the way until the No. 9 Tennessee (10-3) bowed out of the College Football Playoff with a whimper, losing 42-17 in a non-competitive game against No. 8 Ohio State (11) -2) at Ohio Stadium.

The Vols hit the offseason needing to address the passing attack — and that starts with a long look at the wide receiver group.

The wide receiver must be a point of contact for the transfer portal for Tennessee

Much was made of Tennessee’s wide receiver depth before the season, but that turned out to be a misjudgment.

The offense struggled for a myriad of reasons, including Iamaleava’s inconsistency and poor play at offensive tackle. These problems flared up at times. The wide receivers rarely inspired confidence.

“We’ve got to find some guys that want to step up and play, and we will,” Vols coach Josh Heupel said.

Tennessee loses seniors McCoy and Dont’e Thornton. Chris Brazzell II and Squirrel White are the lone returners with more than seven career receptions. Mike Matthews didn’t take off as a freshman as expected. Braylon Staley played in his fourth game at OSU.

Saturday provided a glimpse of the future at the position as Thornton and White left with injuries in the first half. It wasn’t pretty against an elite defense.

Halzle described the issues with the passing game as being “in a phone booth” offensively.

“It’s kind of the sum of all the parts,” Halzle said.

Tennessee couldn’t push the ball down the field. It hasn’t been able to do that since Jalin Hyatt and Cedric Tillman scripted the 2022 offense to insane production.

It will have to hit the portal looking for a boost – and it will have to hit bigger than it did with recent portal additions.

How Tennessee’s secondary overhaul showed a way forward at wide receiver

Tennessee had eight defensive backs transfers after last season. It was better for it.

The Vols entered the portal to get Jermod McCoy from Oregon State. He was an All-American opposite Rickey Gibson III, who had a strong first season.

That’s the offseason playbook Tennessee must follow at wide receiver to equip Iamaleava with the weapons to elevate the offense.

“It’s about providing a team around him,” Halzle said. “If you have a quarterback that can make it go, our job is to make sure we have the pieces and the scheme to allow him to be at his best.

Tennessee has four wide receivers into the portal, including rotation players Chas Nimrod and Kaleb Webb. Young receivers Nathan Leacock and Nate Spillman also signed up after not making the group.

The departures mean Tennessee has a chance to inject new talent into the space, which it did successfully in the defensive backfield before this season.

Iamaleava expressed confidence that the “big young room” was moving forward. He noted the Vols are getting some players back.

“We’re just going to look to get better in the offseason,” he said.

It should include bringing in new opportunities.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at [email protected] and follow him at X @By Mike Wilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription which gives you access to it all.