Jumper even has fans who wear red
KNOXVILLE — To Colton Jumper, she will always be “Gan Gan.”
But for those who knew her as Ann Jumper, or by her maiden name of Ann Weeks, she was not only the valedictorian of Ringgold High School as a 16-year-old, but later a University of Georgia cheerleader and a lifelong Bulldogs backer until her death in 2011.
Fortunately for the University of Tennessee, her children and grandchildren became Big Orange fans, especially sons Jay and Joe, and Jay’s sons Colton and Will.
“Whenever we’d go to family gatherings on my grandmother’s side of the family, it was all Georgia, all Bulldogs,” Colton said Monday afternoon from the Tennessee football complex, where the junior linebacker had just finished discussing his significant role in the Volunteers’ 38-28 comeback win over Florida, as well as this Saturday’s road game against Gan Gan’s Dawgs.
“We had to stay strong,” he said of those family members who rooted for Tennessee. “We knew we’d chosen the right side.”
Until a couple of games ago, if you had told any number of Tennessee football fans that Jumper might be playing for the Bulldogs instead of the Vols if Gan Gan had chosen his school, they might have wished she’d had more power over him.
That’s because many in the social media crowd — that fickle, faceless bunch that former Vols coach Johnny Majors once labeled the Legion of the Miserable long before social media existed — didn’t see Baylor School product Jumper as a capable replacement for injured starter Darrin Kirkland Jr. at Mike (middle) linebacker.
Especially since Kirkland eventually beat him out at that position a year ago after Jumper started the first two games of the season there.
But then Kirkland got hurt, and cool, calm, collected Colton began displaying the skills coaches first admired
in the former walk-on during last year’s preseason. He collected seven total tackles in his first start of this season against Ohio. He added eight more tackles and a pass breakup against the Gators.
Of greater importance to head coach Butch Jones, Jumper became the quarterback of the defense, making sure his teammates were where they were supposed to be when they were supposed to be there.
“I thought Colton Jumper played his best game to date,” Jones said a few minutes before Jumper met the media. “I really liked the way he got us lined up and made some critical plays on the running backs and down the field in pass coverage.”
Added fellow linebacker Cortez McDowell with perhaps the strongest praise yet for Jumper: “We knew what (Jumper) could bring to the table as a Mike linebacker and also as the captain of the defense, so we had a tremendous amount of confidence in him. He showed it this past week, and he also showed it the week before. We’re going to continue to ride him, ride his coattail, and he’s going to continue to be a great Mike
linebacker here.”
He reportedly had all the makings of that a year ago when he started the season opener against Bowling Green, then the second game against Oklahoma. But Jumper also seemed to develop a kind of stage fright as a starter, suddenly reacting rather than acting, far from the cool, calm, collected Colton coaches and teammates had seen during preseason practice.
Kirkland’s injury and the trust of firstyear defensive coordinator Bob Shoops has given Jumper another chance.
“I think getting in and getting game reps has been the key for me,” Jumper said Monday. “It has helped build my confidence up on the defense. Meeting with Coach Shoop has helped me a lot, and knowing what they are going to do before they do it has helped.”
It has certainly helped bring a lot of happiness to the Jumper clan. Uncle Joe — the floral genius who owns the Clay Pot in Riverview — closed the shop this past Saturday so his employees (including five University of Tennessee at Chattanooga students who are all huge Vols fans) could go to the game.
“We’ve got five events this weekend and we’re booked solid the rest of the fall, so this was the only game we could do that,” said Uncle Joe, who was once an all-star player at Baylor. “This is very exciting. We’re all so proud of Colton.”
According to Joe, even the side of the family that roots for Georgia is proud of him.
“Because of us, my mom’s side of the family has always pulled for Tennessee except when we play Georgia,” he said. “But even if I’m not sure they want Tennessee to win this weekend, they really want Colton to do well.”
Jumper intends to do well this weekend. He also expects his high school team to do well in its Friday night showdown with McCallie.
“I’ll definitely turn an ear to hear what’s going on,” he said. “I’ll make sure my dad texts me during the game.”
Jumper even made public his pick. “I’m not really into predictions,” he said. “But I’m going to mark that one down as a ‘W’ for Baylor.”
If Jumper can remain cool, calm, collected Colton against his beloved Gan Gan’s alma mater, the Vols should post their fifth “W” in five games come Saturday afternoon between the hedges.