The injury list continues to get bigger for Tennessee football, playing a key role in Tennessee’s issues late in 2023.
The first domino to fall was linebacker Keenan Pili, who was injured in the opening week against Virginia and has yet to return. The next blow for the Vols came when wide receiver Bru McCoy suffered a season-ending ankle injury in a win over South Carolina.
Cornerback Kamal Hadden was in the middle of a breakout year and was beginning to solidify himself among the best in the SEC, but he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. Linebacker Arion Carter and wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr. have been the most recent additions to the list.
With each injury, depth has slowly thinned for the Vols, and it has shown in each of the last two losses. Tennessee fell on the road to Missouri 36-7, and it fell to Georgia at home on Saturday 38-10.
“It’s disappointing,” head coach Josh Heupel said. “We gotta regroup. We’re banged up. You guys saw that before the game, during the game. This game doesn’t care about it. We gotta come ready to play next Saturday.”
Safety Wesley Walker along with starting tackles John Campbell Jr. and Gerald Mincey were Week 12’s newest additions ahead of the game, and guard Javontez Spraggins left the game early.
Heupel continued to echo that “this game doesn’t care” about injuries. However, he did note how difficult it is to overcome the adversity while addressing that the Vols didn’t play their best football against Georgia.
“Well, it is different than if you have those guys,” Heupel said. “But at the end of the day, you gotta line up, and the 11 gotta go play against their 11, and we gotta find a way to go win in the run game, in the pass game — all of it. We didn’t do a good enough job today as an offensive unit. And I’m including coaches in that too.”
Heupel even hinted that getting freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava reps wasn’t a consideration due to injuries. He didn’t explicitly say so, but it’s safe to assume that one of the “variables” that kept him off the field was the depleted offensive line.
“Well, at this point, just because there’s only one regular-season (game left),” Heupel said. “I mean, there’s a lot of variables that are taking place outside on that field today and what type of situation you want to put him in.”
There is no guarantee that fortunes change even if the Vols do stay healthy all year. However, losing two starting-caliber receivers and over half of the offensive line has not helped them find any sort of rhythm offensively.
Quarterback Joe Milton III has been the main consistent body in the offense along with wide receiver Squirrel White. The two have connected well all season, but the lack of a go-to wide receiver on the outside hampers things in the slot for White.
Still, injuries happen to be the most guaranteed occurrence in football and sports in general. The next man up is the most important, and Tennessee simply hasn’t found that production.
“Whoever’s in the game has got to be able to execute no matter what,” Milton said. “You’re on a scholarship to come here and play football, so that’s what you’ve got to do.”
