Boo Carter returns to Tennessee Football practice

Boo Carter returned to the Tennessee Football practice field with his teammates Tuesday morning, doing on-field work with the Vols for the first time in an open practice during fall camp. The sophomore defensive back has been methodically working his way back to rejoining the team over the last week.

Carter missed offseason workouts and team activities in the lead-up to fall camp. He worked on the side with Tennessee staffers during the first two days of camp last week, then was back in a helmet for Saturday’s practice.

He addressed the team last Tuesday, before camp started Wednesday morning, then spent Wednesday and Thursday afternoons visiting Children’s Hospital in Knoxville.

“Boo is a part of our team here,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said during his media day press conference on Tuesday. “There’s some things that he’s got to accomplish to get back on the field with us. Don’t have a set timeline on that. 

“Our leadership council has been a part of those things, those discussions with me and with Boo. I’m proud of what they’ve done. They care and love Boo and want him to be his best too.”

Season Opener: Tennessee vs. Syracuse, August 30, Atlanta

Tennessee opens the season August 30 against Syracuse in the Aflac Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Vols host ETSU in their home opener on September 6 and start the SEC schedule at home against Georgia on September 13.

It’s unclear what Carter has to do to rejoin his teammates in practice or when that will happen.

Heupel on Tuesday declined to clarify if Carter will be in meetings with his teammates during camp, or if he will or won’t practice. 

“I’m not going to get into all the details of everything,” Heupel said. “He’s here, he’s with us. And each day we’ll figure out what comes next.” 

Josh Heupel ‘disappointed with how some things were handled’

Heupel did confirm that he had been in contact with Carter over the previous week and that attending offseason workouts is required for Tennessee players. 

“At the end of the day,” he said, “it’s a requirement to be here, be a part of what we’re doing. And there’s a lot of information out of there, out in the world. Some of it is correct, some of it is not. I’m not going to address everything over the last week. 

“Disappointed with how some things were handled. At the end of the day, we have conversations, what does it look like moving forward? And that’s all parts, our leadership council, Boo and our staff. So it’s not about what yesterday was, it’s about today. And we’ll see as we continue to progress where that leads us.”