Josh Heupel updates the status of Tennessee defensive end Chaz Coleman

CHATTANOOGA —  Tennessee transfer defensive end Chaz Coleman did not finish spring practice on the field. Coleman who enrolled in January is still working his way back according to head coach Josh Heupel.

“At the end of the day, he’s dealing with some things and has to work through those things. When he’s able to do that, then he will be back with us,” Heupel said Tuesday at the Big Orange Caravan. 

Coleman was one of the most coveted prospects out of the portal. The Penn State transfer followed defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to Tennessee picking the Vols over Tennessee.

“He’s explosive,” Knowles said back in February. “He’s difficult to block. He has a little bit of an invisible cloak, you where he can twist, turn, beat guys one-on-one. He has great initial quickness off the ball. So he’s a guy that can create havoc for an offense and really creates a matchup issue.”

Coleman had 8 tackles, three tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries and a sack in his freshman season at Penn State. 

When he committed to Tennessee, Coleman said he loved the feeling of everything on campus.

 I felt like the family part of this in the support that the coaches bring was really impressive,” Coleman said. 

Coleman has been in the building and around his teammates. Last week, Coleman did an FCA community service event with some of his teammates. 

The football team continues their off-season work in the weight room. Following the conclusion of the spring semester in two weeks, the team will break till the end of May before returning to the next phase of the off-season with news strength coach Derek Owings in June.