Tennessee cornerback Bryce Thompson named SEC freshman of the week

It was a big day for Tennessee football on Saturday. Sure, they faced an inferior opponent in ETSU, but it was a day for Jeremy Pruitt and his coaching staff to settle in and iron things out after a disappointing week one loss to West Virginia.

One reason Saturday was fun was seeing a bunch of newcomers contribute in a big way. Perhaps the biggest was cornerback Bryce Thompson, who picked up his first career interception and nearly scored a touchdown in the process.

Today, Thompson was named the SEC freshman of the week.

Thompson and fellow freshman Alontae Taylor have been thrown into the fire at cornerback this season, playing huge roles in their first two career college football games. All things considered — those two haven’t been too bad. They were far from the problem against West Virginia.

It’s exciting — and a little nerve-racking — to watch them develop on the fly, but Jeremy Pruitt doesn’t have much of a choice.