Tennessee football replaced four of its five starters on the offensive line, and the new-look unit sets to take shape following the Volunteers’ seventh spring practice

Tennessee football must replace four of its five offensive line starters, and the new lineup is taking shape after the Volunteers’ seventh spring session.

Glen Elarbee, the offensive line coach, met with the media after Saturday’s practice. His team has been a Joe Moore Award semifinalist for three consecutive seasons.

The full-padded workout capped the two-day Tennessee coaches clinic, which featured high school and middle school coaches throughout the region.

“After the season when we had exit meetings, I was brutally honest with them about where they stood and the fact that we needed help depth-wise,” Elarbee said. “We were going to bring guys in. The first meeting we had in the room, I went through every single person and told them where I thought they were, who I thought they were as a player – what they needed to improve on, where they were on the depth chart.”

The returning starter of the group is left tackle Lance Heard, who transferred to UT from LSU a year ago. Heard battled injuries during preseason camp and last fall, but now the junior is currently in the best shape and health of his career.

“We have to get better in the areas I listed in spring, with the protection, staying in a good base and run-game footwork, learning the game,” Elarbee said. “He was not only agreeing but wanting help in how to do it and wanting to do extra work. He wants to be elite, and he’s done everything in his power to be a leader and be elite. You just have to keep pushing.”

Redshirt junior Larry Johnson III, five-star true freshman David Sanders Jr., and redshirt freshman Bennett Warren are all competing for the right tackle position. Tennessee will get a new centre for the first time under Josh Heupel. Cooper Mays, a first-team All-American, has left the team, leaving redshirt freshmen William Satterwhite and Max Anderson to compete for his production.

“We’ve divided up responsibilities in the room, and he’s been making sure everybody has their goals set and kind of put that on him,” Elarbee said of Satterwhite. “If they don’t, he has a deal for it. He’s done a good job leadership-wise and has been really solid mentally. He’s gained the weight. He’s 308, pushing 310, so he’s doing everything that he needs to.”

Tennessee is scheduled to hold its first spring scrimmage on Monday night in Neyland Stadium. The scrimmage is closed to the public.

Tickets for the Orange & White Game presented by Cherokee Resorts & Entertainment are on sale now at AllVols.com. Start time is 2 p.m. ET on April 12 in Neyland Stadium.

Tennessee Football Media Availability
Offensive Line Coach Glen Elarbee 

On where the room is in terms of start wise…
“I feel like we are off to a good start, man. It’s different because you lost so many guys, but the good news is this group is all sort of the same age and same level of learning. They have tied into together. They are helping each other. It’s a fun bunch to be around, and we have been working a lot. They have put a ton of time in. They have taken a ton of growth. There’s been some misassignments here and there, but for the most part we have been pretty assignment sound. Guys have been playing hard. There’s a way to go, but a level of doing right now.”

On his overall thoughts about transfer Wendell Moe Jr. …
“One, he is a twitch step dude, man, so he moved great at 345. He’s moving even better at 325. The thing that you saw on tape, but didn’t know until you got him was he has a real six sense for the game, really good at adjusting on the fly and understands. Credit it to him too, probably the most meticulous note taker we have in the meeting. Like we used his notebook, sort as an example when we did notebook checks. The way he approaches the game. He had a little issue trying to get into health wise, but now he is rolling full speed. He is doing phenomenal.”

On what goes into a notebook check from the coaches point-of-view…
“Kevin and I sit there and go through it and make notes. We give them a grade for how they are actually taking notes and ideas on how to organize it differently. Are you doing enough drawings? Are you doing enough of the rules? Are you writing down the corrections you are supposed to be making everyday? Those types of things.”

On if he is like a teacher when going through and grading notebooks…
“Exactly, and it is a task, especially 18 of them. There’s a lot of notes, but it’s been worth it. It’s been kind of what we have done here trying to push the envelope every single day.”

On if he has always done the notebooks and grading…
“I have done it before in the past. Last few years, you have been lucky because you have had a bunch of experienced guys that knew how to take notes and how to do it. Now you have a bunch of youngs guys, that for the first time are learning the process of what it takes to be pro.”

On the biggest difference he has seen in Lance Heard…
“Probably knowledge of the game. He’s really bought in to try to understand everything around him, not just himself. He’s asking about routes, why defenses are doing this, why are we doing this and just trying to holistically learn. The thing I have challenged him on, he still has to continue to work just running game footwork, what he’s doing, his protections, keeping a base and staying in a good body position and fight everyday like there is something breathing down his neck. He’s been awesome. Been phenomenal.”

On getting Sam Pendleton and what he likes about him…
“I feel like we hit on both transfers, and the fact that they are just phenomenal human beings. Sam has helped, one off-the-field to sort of unite the room. He’s done a great job of trying to get guys to go eat dinner outside of the facility or go play golf outside of the facility and do things together. He’s highly intelligent playing guard and center. There’s been some mis assignments just because those are the two toughest positions when you transfer in, and he knows it. We have talked about it, but he grinds at it every single day. He has a great attitude. He’s probably been integrated into the room so fast.”

On missing a lot of players from last year…
“I don’t know, man. It was crazy. Probably more so realistic when you have that first meeting and you are looking at the guys in the room like man this is different, but it’s like miss them and loved having them. Although now you have to go, and you want the best for them. I got to see yesterday, I think it was Jerome Carvin, Cooper Mays, Dayne Davis and Andrej Karic. They were working out, and I got to see them. It was like long last buddies that you haven’t seen in a long time. We are just like school girls over there chatting. We are going to gel this unit that we have now.”

On what he likes about the center competition right now…
“The fact that it is a competition. With Cooper [Mays], you would sort of fake like you have to go, but you knew Cooper was going to be it. [William] Satterwhite, yep for sure. He gets the start of the spring piece of it, but you got Sam [Pendleton] pushing on him, Max [Anderson] pushing on him. Nic Moore has come along. He’s not at that level yet, but there’s competition there. Any time there is competition, it helps you to get better.”

On how David Sanders Jr. has come along during spring…
“Good. Early on, it was challenging him, man you want to play early, you have to learn everything and try to push the envelope mentally. I think he’s got a ton better there. He’s one of the ones that we are trying to help learn how to be a pro as far as the note taking piece of it.  He is freaky athletic and freaky talented. Man, he flashes as much as anybody. Like the amount of times he is able to go play full speed because he knows exactly what he is doing, is way more now than it was at the beginning. You just have to keep building on that to where something changes and he doesn’t have to think. He can just react and go play, but he’s one, again. phenomenal kid. He has bought in every single day. Works and grinds his butt off. Comes over to meet extra. He’s done a great job.”

On William Satterwhite’s development…
“I think he’s doing (great), for one, trying to be a leader. We’ve divided up responsibilities in the room, and he’s been making sure everybody has their goals set and kind of put that on him. If they don’t, he has a deal for it. He’s done a good job leadership-wise and has been really solid mentally. He’s gained the weight. He’s 308, pushing 310, so he’s doing everything that he needs to.”

On how he expects Larry Johnson III to contribute…
“Especially in the last year, I thought he has come an unbelievable long way. Being honest with him through it, I expected him to just jump out and have an unbelievable spring. He has had a very solid one, and I’m like, ‘Man, (Larry), you have the capability to take even another step.’ I think he understands, he agrees. We’ve been trying to be super honest in the O-line room. He’s got that ability. As far as flipping it, I feel like we can potentially do some of that. I just want him to be comfortable, because he played the majority at left (tackle) last year, and now he’s playing right. Again, I can’t speak for him and the room, the buy-in to what the work is, but he’s done a good job.”

On how he balances roles in the room with the addition of transfers…
“Honesty. After the season when we had exit meetings, I was brutally honest with them about where they stood and the fact that we needed help depth-wise. We were going to bring guys in. The first meeting we had in the room, I went through every single person and told them where I thought they were, who I thought they were as a player – what they needed to improve on, where they were on the depth chart. After practice five, we did the same thing. Communicating to them, ‘This is where you’re at. And if you don’t like where you’re at, be a man and fix it. Go get the position. At the end of the day, that’s your responsibility.’ They’ve embraced that, and they’ve enjoyed that piece of it.”

On his exit meeting with Lance Heard…
“Again, I was brutally honest. Like man, it hurt you missing fall camp. You had the ankle (injury) and did a phenomenal job battling through it, but that didn’t help you. We have to get better in the areas I listed in spring, with the protection, staying in a good base and run-game footwork, learning the game. He was not only agreeing but wanting help in how to do it and wanting to do extra work. He wants to be elite, and he’s done everything in his power to be a leader and be elite. You just have to keep pushing. Just telling the truth.”