Tennessee's Butch Jones on Vols Offseason Hype: 'We're Still a Work in Progress'

Tennessee coach Butch Jones presides over a Volunteers program that is a trendy pick to make a lot of noise throughout the college football landscape in 2015.

They've now got the playmakers to do it.

Already, the Vols' name is peppered all over way-too-early top-25 rankings across the Internet—from ESPN.com to Fox Sports to NFL.com.

Oddsshark.com includes Tennessee running back Jalen Hurd toward the bottom of its early Heisman Trophy candidates. According to college football guru Phil Steele, Vols quarterback Joshua Dobbs is also on a Heisman odds board.

There's nowhere for the Vols to hide any longer. The expectations have arrived. But is UT ready to win big?

"We're ready to continue to develop," Jones told B/R in an exclusive interview.

"Obviously, when you win, expectations are placed upon you, and we understand that. You want to be in a program where you have high expectations, but also I deal in realism. Like we spoke about, we're still not there yet from a competitive depth standpoint. But what I've told our football team is in terms of total development, we can't just be a year older; we have to be a year better."

Yes, UT's roster still has some holes, but it also has some areas that absolutely could shine.

Dobbs and Hurd are stars in the making. JUCO running back transfer Alvin Kamara really should bolster the running game, and there is a wealth of talent in the receiving corps. If the offensive line improves, the Vols could be explosive on offense.

Defensively, they already return a lot of talent in nine starters. When you throw in high-profile defensive linemen such as Kahlil McKenzie and Shy Tuttle, as well as potential stars throughout the unit, that side of the ball carries a lot of excitement as well.

For the first time in many years, there aren't any guaranteed losses on the schedule. Tennessee gets Georgia, Oklahoma, Arkansas and South Carolina all at home. It has to travel to Alabama, Florida and Missouri, but the slate of games doesn't look as daunting anymore considering UT's talent.

Another big, stacked recruiting class, on top of the one from 2014, has restocked the shelves of players on Rocky Top. Talented commitments from offensive linemen, defensive linemen, quarterbacks, running backs and at middle linebacker have strengthened some areas where Tennessee lacked depth.

Even all the transfers UT has dealt with this offseason can't be considered too detrimental. Despite eight defections from last year's class, the Vols still have 53 players on the roster from the previous two recruiting cycles.

UT is still equipped with enough depth and talent to win right now.

Though Jones still doesn't see a finished product, he commended his players' work in the weight room, how much they've taken to new offensive coordinator Mike DeBord and how the defensive players remain dedicated to improve under coordinator John Jancek.

All those things—along with a ho-hum offseason devoid of trouble thus far—are indicators UT has the leadership to handle the hype.

Jones preaches focusing on getting better every day, and that's why he doesn't worry about the Vols becoming too arrogant. They're only coming off of a 7-6 season in which they had to fight just to become bowl-eligible, after all.

To go from that point to competing for an SEC East title in one year is a tall order.

"We're still a work in progress," Jones said. "Now, you understand there are great expectations and you want that, but all we have to do is not take our eyes off the bull's-eye. We have to work to become better individually and collectively as a football team as well.

"What individuals can see now is they can see that vision starting to shape and take place. To me, it's all about timing, being at the right place at the right time, and Tennessee football is the right place at the right time. It's about leaving your legacy and helping put Tennessee football back to where it belongs."

It's a mantra Jones preaches in recruiting and to his players once they become Vols. He wants to see an ownership of the program, and when that happens, the wins will come.

From the day he arrived in Knoxville, he said, losing hasn't been acceptable, even if it was always understood it wouldn't be an overnight fix.

With a winning record capped by a bowl victory last year, the Vols took an important step—one that the public relations department showcased with a video that further fuels the hype machine.

Even so, Jones knows that TaxSlayer Bowls won't be celebrated quite so fondly in a future expected to hold bigger and better things, beginning now.

Recruiting buzz mixed with last season's success on the field equal an urgency to produce in the win column. Jones knows it, the players already at UT know it and recruits are groomed to expect more.

"My goals are to help the University of Tennessee win the national championship, and every other one of my personal goals and everything like that fall under that category," the 5-star Kahlil McKenzie told B/R last week. "The coaches told me what I need to do, and it's just all about me going out there, putting my nose down and getting to work and trying to be the best football player I can be to help Tennessee win a national championship. That'll be my main goal all four years I'm there."

According to Rocky Top Talk's Will Shelton, UT will be trotting out its most talented lineup since 2008, with a projected 22 starters that have a total of 81 stars from recruiting rankings. Sure, that talent is still young, but it's an impressive group of players.

With the way Jones continues to recruit and with dynamic players in key roles, there's no wonder the Vols are being talked about as a program on the rise.

It's good publicity, but it's also important to note that Jones' mentality hasn't changed, even if it's obvious from talking to him that he seems much more confident in his roster than a season ago.

"We always have championship expectations. That’s part of our culture; that’s part of the DNA of Tennessee football," Jones said. "We expect to win, and we expect to compete to win championships: bowl championships, SEC championships and then eventually the national championships, but that’s all a process.

"I'm very excited, but that excitement factor has not changed. This is a very, very special place. It's an honor and privilege to play here and an honor and privilege to coach here. I’m excited for our fans. I have that excitement each and every day I come to work."

All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports composite rankings unless otherwise noted. All quotes obtained firsthand, unless otherwise noted.

Brad Shepard covers SEC football and is the Tennessee Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow Brad on Twitter @Brad_Shepard.