Tennessee Uses Open Date to Heal and Recruit as Basketball Nears Its Official Start

Tennessee football is trying to reset after a disappointing result last week, with attention now turning toward Kentucky. The break in the schedule arrives at a useful moment for the Volunteers, giving the team a chance to get healthier before its next game rather than carrying lingering issues straight into another week of preparation.

That open date also shifts part of the focus off the field. With no game to play this week, recruiting becomes a larger part of the work for Tennessee, as the program looks to use the pause to make progress for the future while still preparing for the stretch ahead, starting with Kentucky.

The update was not limited to football. Tennessee basketball was also part of the picture, with hoops ready to go official, adding another storyline for the athletic department as one program works through its open date and the other moves toward getting underway in earnest.