I believe I know what Tennessee’s running back situation will be this fall. However, the Vols have surprised me before and may well do so again.
Heading into last season, I was pretty certain that Dylan Sampson would be the go-to back and freshman Peyton Lewis, who is 6’1″ 212 pounds, would begin to gobble up more and more carries as the year went on. I thought Sampson, who was 5’11” 201 pounds, was too small to hold up to an entire season in the SEC. I was wrong.
Not only did I shortchange Sampson, who ended up becoming the SEC offensive player of the year, but I also was wrong on DeSean Bishop, who went from a low-grade prospect to a surefire second-team threat at just 5’10” 208 pounds. Could he be the Vols’ first-team tailback throughout this season? I’m not ruling that out, but it seems unlikely given his size.
Although I should have learned my lesson, I’m willing to take another stab at what the Vols’ running back situation will look like this season. I think this is the season in which Lewis establishes himself and Bishop will be the Vols’ second-team running back once again. No offense to Bishop, but Lewis is just more talented, and I believe that will play out during the offseason and, eventually, in preseason camp. However, as noted, I’ve been wrong before.
The Vols apparently weren’t comfortable enough with their crew of tailbacks to stand pat. Therefore, they nabbed transfer tailback Star Thomas from Duke.
“Physical runner,” Tennessee offensive coordinator Joey Halzle said. “Tons of experience. We were young. We went from being old in that room to being young, guys without a ton of game experience. He’s got a bunch of that.
“He’s played at a high level in a big conference. He’s not going to step into any moment that feels too big for him. He’s got a skill set that goes with and translates to the SEC. He is a real solid pickup for us.”
Time will tell if Thomas, who is 6’0″ 211 pounds, is truly a star or not. The same could be said for freshman Daune Morris, who was a three-star prospect when he signed with Tennessee out of Oakland High School in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
“I think you got a guy that’s got a chance to be a big play potential guy when he has the ball in his hand,” Halzle said. “He has shown flashes where he can put a foot in the ground and get north and south really quickly. He’s got high-end speed. He has really good wiggle.
“For him, it’s going to come down to, ‘We know what you can do with the ball in your hands, but are you going to protect the quarterback when the ball is not in your hands? Are you going to be in the right spot at the right time on passes and run plays? Are you going to follow the right track, so we’re not taking negatives on a play that should have hit inside and you bounced it?’
“With young backs, a lot of times early, you see the flashes of what they can be, and for them getting on the field and contributing at a young age, it’s all the stuff that maybe you don’t see as much that we got to go do a good job in film evaluation or practice like, ‘Yeah, he’s ready’ or ‘He’s not quite there yet.'”
That makes me think that Morris, who is 5’10” 192 pounds, won’t be the answer this season as Tennessee tries to replace Sampson’s production. However, again, I’ve been wrong before.
