Tennessee needs these two ready to roll.
One of the main points of concern on Tennessee’s 2024 roster over the summer has been the running back depth, which took a big hit as Jabari Small and Jaylen Wright turned pro. That leaves Dylan Sampson and a whole lot of unknown after that.
Sampson will be the unquestioned leader there and should get the bulk of the work, but as we’ve seen from Josh Heupel’s staff in the past, they like to rotate fairly often. Last year it was a three-headed attack with Small, Wright and Sampson. This year? Well it could be a bit different without much experience on the roster.
However, the next two in line to receive carries are Cam Seldon and likely Peyton Lewis. Khalifa Keith and Desean Bishop are also in the equation.
Both Seldon and Lewis have been dealing with injuries this offseason, and their return timeframe has been a bit of a mystery to this point. For Lewis especially being a true freshman, this upcoming camp will be time he can’t afford to miss as he gets up to speed for the fall.
“Both of those guys are doing extremely well,” Josh Heupel said on Tuesday in Dallas at SEC Media Days. “Peyton is fully integrated into everything that we’re doing. Cam’s really close to that. He’ll have a growth progression as we get into training camp, but excited to have both of those guys continue along that line and be ready for kickoff when we get to the season.”
Lewis, a four-star prospect who ranked inside of the top 200 overall of the 2024 recruiting cycle, is out of Salem, Virginia. He was unable to participate in spring practices due to an injury from high school, but Tennessee hopes he’ll be on the field for fall camp in a couple of weeks. The true freshman checks in at 6-1, 200 pounds and will wear No. 22.
Seldon suffered a shoulder injury in spring camp and has been working to get back since March. Reading between the lines from Heupel today, it sounds like he’s not quite ready to hit the field just yet. The former four-star athlete didn’t play much last season, but he would be thought of as the leader in the clubhouse for the RB2 role this season.
Tennessee opted not to hit the transfer portal after spring practice, despite the need. That seems like a decent sign on how the staff feels about Seldon getting back in time for the season, but it’s definitely something to monitor in the coming weeks.