Butch Jones is like 'a second father,' Jarrett Guarantano says, and UT is 'on its way up'

Jarrett Guarantano made his first career start last weekend. He’ll make his first road start Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS) at Alabama.

In between, Guarantano got a different debut out of the way, appearing Wednesday on the “Vol Calls” radio show.

Like he often is with a microphone in front of him, Tennessee’s redshirt freshman quarterback sounded at ease.

Asked why he selected Tennessee during the recruiting process, Guarantano sang the praises of UT and its embattled coach, Butch Jones.

“I just loved the atmosphere here,” Guarantano said on the radio show. “I really see a big picture and a future, and I really think that the University of Tennessee is going to be on top soon. I felt very comfortable with Coach Jones. He’s like a second father to me, and I think the program is on its way up.”

More:Butch Jones: Tennessee football program has made 'monumental steps'

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Jones also discussed growing up with a father, James Guarantano, who is in the Rutgers Hall of Fame after a standout career as a wide receiver there. He said he and his dad would throw the football around in the yard “more than you could ever imagine.”

“I think we were out there every day,” he added.

Why did Guarantano wind up at quarterback and not wide receiver, like his dad?

“He told me I wasn’t tough enough to go across the middle, so I had to play quarterback,” Guarantano said on the radio show.

Guarantano showed some toughness on Saturday in the Vols’ 15-9 loss to South Carolina. He took some hits after running for yardage of several plays, absorbed seven sacks and even threw a downfield block to help spring Ty Chandler for a 30-yard run.

Guarantano finished 11 of 18 for 133 yards against the Gamecocks.

The Vols kept the game plan pretty basic for Guarantano, mostly sticking to read-option runs and safe passes.

Jones hinted at using another safe game plan against Alabama.

“One of the things with a young quarterback is you have to make sure that you don’t put too much on his plate so early,” Jones said the radio show. “We don’t want his mind to tie his feet up. We want him to really go out there and play freely and not be thinking, especially against a team like Alabama. With their team speed, he’s going to have to make split-second decisions. So I think there’s a fine line to giving him, in the playbook, as much as he can handle but not overdoing it, as well.”