WVLT: Coach Fulmer Ends Final PreSeason Scrimmage a Bit Frustrated With TN's Receivers

VOLS CONCLUDE SCRIMMAGE WORK; MARTIN OUT ONLY 2-4 WEEKS:

Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer received a favorable diagnosis Tuesday on his injured star pupil, defensive end Ben Martin. A freshman from Cincinnati, Martin was injured in scrimmage play Saturday and underwent an arthroscopic evaluation on his knee Tuesday. “We got good news on Ben Martin; he does not have an anterior cruciate ligament tear, which is great,” Fulmer said after Tuesday’s brief scrimmage at Neyland Stadium. “He has a bone bruise and will be back in 2-4 weeks. We’re hopeful for two.” The results helped counter a wrist injury suffered Tuesday by senior tight end Brad Cottam on what could have been a lengthy TD pass from Erik Ainge. “We’re a little bit concerned,” Fulmer said of the mishap. “He will get an X-ray and hopefully that will be OK.” Tuesday’s work, viewed by a large crowd of UT students invited to the scrimmage on the day before fall classes begin, was largely about fine-tuning Tennessee’s lineup for California.

“We’re pretty much settled,” Fulmer said. “We can identify 11 on both sides pretty well right now. But the second-team positions, we’re still competing and that probably will continue. We’re a fairly young football team in a lot of places and I’m not saying a young guy can’t continue to get better and pass up an older guy.” One of those youngsters, wide receiver Ahmad Paige, caught an 88-yard touchdown pass from Nick Stephens for an afternoon highlight. The afternoon’s receiving numbers were pretty balanced, with no one player catching more than two passes. “We’re still looking for a couple of big-time receivers,” Fulmer said. “I think Denarius Moore (2 catches for 22 yards) has certainly moved himself into that group of guys we can count on. And he gives us a threat.” Daryl Vereen led all ball-carries with 34 yards on nine attempts, while Arian Foster had seven carries for 30 yards and a touchdown. Turnovers were a problem for the Vols toward the end of Tuesday’s scrimmage, although they were mostly the result of youthful hands.

“We need to hold on to the football better,” Fulmer said. “Sometimes when you have young players, they don’t secure it quite as well as you would like.” Fulmer liked the return of senior linebacker Ryan Karl, who has missed most of preseason camp with a back injury. Karl returned to full-speed contact only Monday and Tuesday has his first live scrimmage competition. “Ryan gets us lined up, he’s got an energy about him and he’s pretty fresh, too, because he’s not practiced a lot,” Fulmer said. “But his experience certainly is a plus and he has good ability.” The Vols have a brief practice Wednesday afternoon before returning to a regular schedule Thursday and Friday. The annual kicking scrimmage wraps up fall camp activities Saturday at Haslam Field.