Tennessee Football: Jarrett Guarantano ready to have full control of offense

As Tennessee looks to turn the corner in 2019, the Vols quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is ready to have full control of the offense.

Jarrett Guarantano got beat up game after game last season due to poor play from the offensive line and just not having a great team surrounding him.

That could all change this year with an older, more experienced offensive line in front of Guarantano. The addition of Jim Chaney as offensive coordinator won’t hurt either.

"“It’s a lot — it’s a lot different,” Guarantano said at SEC Media Days. “I think Coach Chaney really trusts me with the offense, and I think — well, I don’t think, I know — that he has me really calling protections. He has me calling plays, calling my own plays at the line.”"

Based on those comments it looks like Chaney might be building his very own Peyton Manning at the line of scrimmage.

Peyton is known for making his adjustments at the line and as a field commander. If Guarantano can get close enough even to touch what Manning did on the field then, well, he’s going to be really good.

I know to compare JG to Peyton is asking a lot of him, but Chaney knows what he’s doing, and he can get the most out of Guarantano. He showed a lot of strength and leadership last season as he was beaten and bruised in almost every game.

Seeing all the positive things coming out of the summer as Guarantano gets more and more comfortable with Chaney’s offense makes me really excited to see what he will do on the field this fall.

This time last year Guarantano was in a quarterback battle with Keller Chryst, and after defeating Chryst in that QB battle, Guarantano proved he’s the guy to run the offense for the next couple of years.

I think Guarantano will be able to bring in the reigns this season after spending the past couple of seasons working under center. Pruitt agrees with that statement and said at SEC Media Days that he believes Guarantano is ready to be the guy running the offense.

"“He can change plays at the line of scrimmage, and he can get us in the right protections,” Pruitt said. “But the most important thing is Jarrett has the respect of his teammates and his coaching staff. And he’s been a fantastic leader for us over the last six months or eight months as we started this offseason and works out about his future.”"

Last year he proved he has what it takes to be a leader with his play on the field. It’s going to be exciting to see what he can do this fall after a successful offseason.

Guarantano has had a lot of good things said about him and the offense throughout the Spring and Summer in his first season working with Chaney. If he hasn’t already it’s only a matter of time before he gets things clicking and he’s slinging the ball down the field.