HOOVER, Ala. – Tennessee junior Joshua Dobbs is not the typical starting quarterback in the Southeastern Conference.
When he’s not perfecting his mechanics or reviewing the playbook, Dobbs devotes hours to studying his lifelong passion – aerospace engineering.
“I’ve always competed in the classroom the same way I compete on the field,” Dobbs said. “I’ve always been fascinated with airplanes, aircraft and the building and designing [of them].”
Although his teammates admire Dobbs’ academic achievement, junior defensive back Cameron Sutton said sometimes what Dobbs says goes over his head.
“When he starts talking about the aerospace engineering stuff, it’s like I’m going to listen to you, but I really don’t know what you are saying,” Sutton said. “It takes a strong person. Not many people go so hard with a major like that, let alone be a quarterback. It’s amazing that he’s doing that.”
On the field, Dobbs looks to build on his 4-1 record as a starter last season and help the Volunteers compete for their first Southeastern Conference title since 1998.
The Alpharetta, Georgia, native finished 2014 with more than 1,200 passing yards while tallying nine passing touchdowns and a team-leading eight rushing touchdowns.
With Dobbs heading into his first season as the undisputed starter, Tennessee coach Butch Jones said he is adjusting to a larger leadership role.
“We challenged him in the spring to be what we call a CEO quarterback, an individual…that can solve problems on his own [and] can provide the leadership and the stability that we can expect from that position,” Jones said. “We’re excited about him.”
While Dobbs leads the offense, Sutton has stepped into leadership role and hopes to transform a defense that finished in the middle of the pack last season.
Last season, Sutton recorded a team-best 16 passes defended, fourth-best in conference and tied for the third-most for a single season in Tennessee program history.
During the offseason, Sutton focused on mentoring the younger defensive players.
“Embracing that leadership role that was my biggest thing,” Sutton said. “Getting to the younger players,preaching to them expectations, what we expect from them. Just influencing them, pushing them to grind and get ready for the season.”