Tennessee’s Kirkland is set to return
KNOXVILLE — Tennessee’s wait for Darrin Kirkland Jr.’s return may be nearing its end.
The talented linebacker, who hasn’t played since hurting his ankle in the third quarter of the second game of the season against Virginia Tech, is expected to play in the Volunteers’ game Saturday night at South Carolina.
Kirkland’s ankle didn’t respond as well as Tennessee hoped when he practiced the week before the Alabama game, but the Vols’ open date provided him an extra week to continue to improve his health.
“It’s definitely good to have Kirkland back,” cornerback Emmanuel Moseley said Monday. “I think he’s one of our best leaders, and he’s one of those guys that’s on the field that’s going to give you his all. He’s going to go hard and he’s going to make plays. That’s always something we would like to have.”
Based on recent comments from multiple coaches, Tennessee also would like to pair Kirkland with Colton Jumper, who has piled up 39 tackles as Kirkland’s replacement at middle linebacker. The former Baylor School standout said Monday the potential pairing had yet to be discussed, though Tennessee could decide to make use of Jumper’s ability to play multiple linebacker positions.
“The strengths would be those are two guys that have a lot of game reps,” Jumper said, “but I think if you throw any of those linebackers out there, they’re going to get the job done. You saw Elliott (Berry) come in against Alabama and play really well. You’ve seen Cortez (McDowell) in the past play really well.
“I know you haven’t seen Gavin (Bryant) too much, but he’s a very good football player, and Dillon (Bates), too. I think game reps, that’s what D.K. has to offer. Also, he’s probably our fastest linebacker and probably has the most playmaking ability out of all of us.”
Sutton nearing return?
Coach Butch Jones said the information he’s receiving is pointing toward the return of All-SEC cornerback Cameron Sutton, who hurt his ankle against Ohio in September, in a “couple more weeks.”
The senior captain has remained a fixture around the team, and his injury absence hasn’t stopped him from preparing and leading like he’s playing.
“I feel like anybody who gets injured, they expect to come back and things like that,” Moseley said. “We’ll see if he does come back, but I think Cam has done a really great job of being that mentor for us in the secondary. He’s been helping us out with film and giving us ticks and things the receivers do and certain things like that to help us out on the field.
“I feel like Cam is one of the best leaders we have. He’s a great person and I feel like he’s done a really good job.”
Thundering Hurd
Though Tennessee expects Alvin Kamara, who does not need surgery on his injured left knee, to return at some point in November, the Vols won’t have the dynamic running back for at least the next couple of games.
It would be an excellent time for Jalen Hurd to get back on track.
After missing half of the Georgia game and all of the Texas A&M game, Hurd is 229 rushing yards off his total through seven games in 2015 and averaging less than 4 yards per carry.
“We anticipate him having good games in moving forward,” Jones said. “There ain’t anybody in our program who takes more pride in his performance than Jalen Hurd. He dissects every single run (for) what could he do better. He works very, very hard, so I anticipate him being fine.
“Jalen Hurd’s a great player,” he added, “and one of the best backs in the country, and we’re going to get him the football.”
Field trip
On Wednesday last week, Jones felt his team’s exhaustion was still too apparent from playing seven games in as many weeks and facing four straight ranked SEC opponents, so he called off practice and the players instead went to see a movie.
Tight end Ethan Wolf said the Vols saw “The Accountant” and recommended the action thriller starring Ben Affleck.
“We were supposed to have practice, and everybody was taped up,” he said. “There was a little bit of fatigue on the team for sure, and going through a seven-game grind like that, that’s expected. He made a gut call and rewarded us a little bit with a day off. I think it helped us a team to re-energize ourselves and lay back for an extra day and get ready for this week.”