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The transfer portal opens April 16, and Tennessee football coach Josh Heupel sounds at least mildly interested in adding a wide receiver.
Heupel likes his talent at receiver, but depth could be a concern.
UT has only six receivers on scholarship in spring practice, and some of them are injured. A seventh receiver, freshman Joakim Dodson, will join the group this summer. And defensive back/punt returner Boo Carter is getting reps as a situational receiver.
Heupel didn’t fully endorse the idea of adding more receivers. But he certainly didn’t dismiss it either.
“We had some guys that departed through the transfer portal. It’s hard to keep everybody happy at that position,” Heupel said on Monday. “I love the group that we’ve got. As a staff, you always evaluate where you’re at. On the back end of spring ball, we’ll certainly do that.”
UT will finish spring practice with its Orange and White Spring Game at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Minor injuries in spring hint at attrition in 2025 season
Heupel’s perspective is timely.
On Monday, UT held its second intrasquad scrimmage of spring practice. Braylon Staley, who’s projected as the starting slot receiver, did not play due to injury. His backup, Alabama transfer Amari Jefferson, played in the scrimmage, but he’s still limited while recovering from a 2024 injury.
That attrition is typical for any spring practice, but it signals potential depth problems in the 2025 season.
Last season, six UT receivers played at least 199 snaps on offense. And a seventh receiver, Staley, was needed just to fill out the rotation in the College Football Playoff game against Ohio State after multiple receivers entered the portal.
Meanwhile, the Vols have only six scholarship receivers in spring practice: Junior Chris Brazzell, sophomore Mike Matthews, sophomore Staley, redshirt freshman…
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Publish date : 2025-04-07 17:11:00
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