It never was going to be easy to fill the big shoes of Tennessee Vols WR Bru McCoy. The senior wideout, who was a reliable presence on the outside in the passing game and as a run blocker, suffered a brutal ankle injury that prematurely ended his season in the 41-20 win over South Carolina this year.
However, the Vols have since rotated other options in to try and fill that void as best they can. Redshirt freshman Chas Nimrod had an impactful moment with a 39-yard touchdown catch in Tennessee's 33-27 win over Kentucky. Later, WR Dont'e Thornton had a nifty catch and run for 47 yards in the second half.
It was the latter's comfort on the outside that stood out to Tennessee offensive coordinator Joey Halzle when he met with the media on Tuesday.
"Dont'e - putting him outside - you could see it on tape. He was more comfortable originally right from the snap with it. That's why he played really well out there. He had his best game of the season by far. The (play) that you're talking about, it was a scramble drill. He was running that curl, and then Joe scrambled to the left, and kind of directed him back inside because he felt the dead spot. The best part about it was that was a contested catch. The kid was coming outside in on him. Dove in front of him, took his vision as he was getting ready to catch it. He stuck his hands out, caught it, and then straight vertical. You saw him start to make a big run down the field right there. So it was really good to see the competitive catch and off-schedule situation where this isn't how we coached it planned it, practiced it. Just react, make a play, and then go get big yards after the catch. (It) was good to see." - Tennessee OC Joey Halzle
Thornton has spent most of the season playing in the slot, where he has been listed as Squirrel White's backup on the depth charts throughout the year. However, the 6'5", 214-pound Thornton has the prototypical size to play on the outside. In fact, this week against UConn, he's now listed for the first time as a co-starter on the outside with Nimrod and Kaleb Webb on Tennessee's weekly depth chart.
With performances like he had against Kentucky, Thornton could make it harder to keep him off the field, whether he's in one spot or another.
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