There seem to be two running backs separating themselves from the rest of the pack as Tennessee looks for the next Vol to carry the rock, as coaches like to say.
One is a phenomenal size-speed athlete that looks like a bear to tackle and a gazelle to outrun. The other is, well, you know about him.
While Peyton Lewis may have special, unique abilities, DeSean Bishop is the player who just kept plugging along last season and has every intent to do so this season, even though he’s just listed at 5-foot-10, which he is not.
“I thought DeSean and Peyton did a really nice job today in the run game, but also in pass protection,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said after the Vols’ scrimmage on Monday. “I thought the young guys that are new to our football team went out and executed extremely well. Popped some runs, but I liked the way that they finished them getting pad under pad and going plus two.”
That’s been especially true in games for Bishop. The Karns (Tenn.) High School product averaged over six-yards per carry last season as he ran for 455 yards on just 74 carries, which included a 53-yard rush that showcased his top-end speed. Not bad.
Whoever is running the ball, they’ll have to rely on an offensive line that has to replace four starters. Rebuilding Tennessee’s offensive line is key, as well as a work in progress..
“At this point, don’t have just a first five,” Heupel said. “We’re playing guys in multiple positions, seeing their ability to handle it, but also seeing the growth and execution within that. There’s great competition every single day and we’re gonna keep that going here as we go through spring.”
The most challenging aspect of replacing almost an entire offensive line is finding someone to step in for former Vols Cooper Mays, who was a team leader and an All-SEC player. Notre Dame transfer Sam Pendleton and redshirt freshman William Satterwhite are battling it out over that position.
“Tonight I thought the guys did a really good job,” Heupel said “There weren’t a bunch of issues as far as communication. We worked silent count tonight, had crowd noise. I thought they handled it all-in-all really well. There’s a lot of young guys that are extremely talented. We just got to continue to grow within the scope of what we’re doing. Thought they performed well tonight. They’ve done that the first five, six days, but we still got a lot of growth left.”
Hopefully not too much. The Vols won’t begin the season with an easy September, which has usually been the case. Georgia is looming on Sept. 6, just after the season opener against Syracuse and a get-better game against ETSU.
