Tennessee kicked off spring practices on Monday at Anderson Training Center.
Sophomore Lance Heard took part in his first spring practice with the Vols. The 6-foot-6, 335-pound offensive lineman transferred from LSU to Tennessee on Jan. 21.
“He’s a really young player that played snaps and played well when he had the opportunity,” Heupel said. “He’s a young player that’s going to have to continue to grow. He has to develop and grow into being a pro in how he handles himself every single day.
“He’s been awesome inside of our building, developing relationships and how he’s competed every day. The guys that we took from the transfer portal, that recruitment happens really quickly, and it’s been a great group that has come in the building and tried to blend in and mesh into our team culture extremely quickly. They’ve handled themselves with a lot of maturity. He’s handled himself with maturity. On the field, he’s a young player that’s seven or eight months into his college football career. He’s just beginning his journey, fundamentals and technique, understanding what we are doing offensively and the communication that’s going to have to happen up front, and when we play with tempo, being able to function and operate within that. He’s in the beginning stages. He’s uber-talented and been great in the building. I expect him to grow a bunch here over the next 14 practices.”
Heard appeared in 12 games, including on start, for LSU in 2023.
PHOTOS: Tennessee kicks off 2024 spring football practices
