More than half of Tennessee’s large senior class has the option of playing another season in 2024, and one of the veteran starters for the Vols appears set to return next season. John Campbell Jr., Tennessee’s starting left tackle this season after transferring in from Miami, announced with a unique social media video on Monday night that he’s returning next season, which both he and a Tennessee official later confirmed to GoVols247. The former starter for the Hurricanes joined the Vols in January and won the left tackle job in preseason camp before starting nine games this season.
The trenches are where Tennessee stands to gain the most if several seniors opt to use their extra seasons of eligibility from the 2020 pandemic-impacted season, and Campbell is a big first domino to fall for the Vols in their favor, particularly with how competitive the transfer market is for offensive lineman should they have had to turn to the portal for his potential replacement.
Campbell was playing well for the first two months of the season before getting hurt against Kentucky, and he missed three of the final four games and didn’t finish the game he started (Missouri) in November. His announcement video was in peak Campbell fashion. He posted a 31-second video with his face and the faces of Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel and freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava over three men celebrating. There were neither words nor a graphic in the accompanying tweet.
