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KNOXVILLE -- Jonathan Crompton didn't make much of a first impression Monday night at UCLA in his debut as Tennessee's starting quarterback.

It had nothing to do, he insists, with what was ailing him Wednesday.

A sore right ankle prevented Crompton from participating in the early portions of practice open to media Wednesday afternoon, two days after he completed less than 50 percent of his passes in UT's 27-24 overtime loss to the Bruins.

The same ankle drew attention during preseason practice when Crompton reportedly was seen on campus wearing a protective walking boot.

Fulmer said the team treated Wednesday as "a rest day" for Crompton.

"It's a little sore, but nothing too bad," said Crompton, who wore a small brace on the ankle. "I'm ready to go. It's just sore. I've just got to play through it."

The diagnosis wasn't much different in regards to his mistakes against UCLA.

Making his second career start, Crompton completed 19 of 41 passes for 189 yards and an interception in the opener. Vols coach Phillip Fulmer said Crompton's first-quarter fumbled snap and a third-down sack in the second half were two "rookie" mistakes.

Fulmer later added that Crompton "stood in the pocket and got the heck beat out of him a lot more than he should have," even though he was sacked only once.

"I've got to make more consistent plays than what I did," Crompton said. "I expect more out of myself than I gave."

FOSTER'S FUMBLES: While insisting he was "not defending" Arian Foster's third-quarter fumble that squandered UT's opportunity to take a double-digit lead, Fulmer weighed in on the discussion of the senior tailback's tendency to fumble at the worst possible times.

"There's a perception out there that (Foster) doesn't secure the ball as well as he should," Fulmer said. "I think the reality is he has a ball-security problem, not a fumbling problem. We just had a conversation after the game about taking care of the ball, and he didn't have his elbow tucked high and tight or two hands on it like he's supposed to. I am certain he will do that next time.

"If you play running back, you're going to have a fumble every now and then. Hopefully not too many, and hopefully not untimely like that one. Now, I'm not defending him. It never should have happened. But since his sophomore year, he really hasn't had a lot of those."

MISPLACED BLAME: There's no simple explanation, Fulmer said, for why the Bruins were successful in pressuring Crompton throughout the game.

"I think it's a combination of things," Fulmer said. "It's protection. They gave us a lot of looks, a lot of different things that were challenges. The timeliness of route-running. The timeliness of setting your feet and throwing it. All of those things together equals a sore quarterback, and some batted balls and some hurried throws."

Fulmer bristled at the suggestion that offensive coordinator Dave Clawson's system calling for linemen to move from one side of the field to the other -- either strongside or quickside -- was part of the problem.

"That doesn't have anything to do with anything," Fulmer said. "If I thought it was a problem, I'd be the first one to change it. That would be absolutely asinine on my part to let that go on if I thought it was a problem."

IN THE BOX: Fulmer deflected a question hinting at fans' criticisms of Clawson calling plays from the press box rather than from the sideline.

"I'm comfortable with Dave," he said. "Dave's a good communicator upstairs and sees well, knows what's going on well. He can communicate with the quarterback on the sideline. If he was downstairs, you'd say he ought to be upstairs, so you can't win that one."

OTHER INJURIES: Junior safety Demetrice Morley wore a cast on his injured right wrist, and Fulmer said sophomore cornerback Dennis Rogan is "still really sore" with a strained abdominal muscle but "should be fine."

Both players were able to practice Wednesday.