before going down with the injury last year. McCoy now will help usher in the Nico Iamaleava era, looking to make things a bit easier on the sophomore quarterback and first-time starter.
A former five-star recruit, McCoy had quite the winding road to Knoxville. A recruiting saga for the ages played out back in 2019, as McCoy flip-flopped and transferred back and forth to Texas and USC. He ultimately ended up a Trojan for three seasons, before finding a true home at Tennessee.
Heupel uses McCoy as a power player — a run after the catch guy on screens, a leader blocker on the perimeter for those screens and a guy that can make tough catches in traffic over the middle. He’s also made huge catches down the field in big moments, none bigger than his grab against Alabama in 2022 to set up the game winning field goal.
Tennessee missed him in a big way last season down the stretch. Adding him back into the equation will be big for the offense as a whole, especially as the Vols’ transition to a young quarterback.
“He should be ready,” Heupel said. “He’s in a position to have an elite summer and be ready to roll.”