Chaz Coleman absent as Tennessee football starts summer workouts

The Tennessee football team has started its summer workout program and the Vols have done so without transfer defensive end Chaz Coleman.

“Chaz has been dealing with some things, and we’re here to support him. We’ll continue to go through that process,” head coach Josh Heupel said at SEC Spring Meetings.

Coleman, who didn’t finish spring practice or spring semester workouts, has been dealing with some on-going personal issues.

Last month, Heupel was asked about Coleman on the Big Orange Caravan and gave no timetable for a possible return.

“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 at the caravan stop in Chattanooga.

The challenge for Heupel is how much more time does he give Coleman time to work through “those things”. Last summer, Tennessee had a July distraction when Boo Carter left the team in the middle of summer workouts. Carter has since transferred to Colorado. Carter and Coleman’s situations and reasons for not participating are different, but Coleman’s continued absence puts Heupel in a challenging spot. 

In January, 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 Ohio State.

“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 was around some of his teammates doing community service work in late April and May. He also spent a good bit of time with defensive line coach Rodney Garner after spring practice. 

But as the summer grind starts, the question remains as to whether or not Coleman will be a part of it.