Tennessee football: 10 Vols freshmen most likely to play early in 2018

Tennessee football has an open running back competition this fall to see who’s going to start. The big names are Ty Chandler, the returning all-purpose back, and Madre London, the graduate transfer power back from the Michigan State Spartans.

Tim Jordan is generating a lot of news as well. That would seem to limit what Jeremy Banks will be able to do in the system. But the true freshman is another four-star power back who is a perfect fit for what Jeremy Pruitt and Tyson Helton are trying to do.

In fact, he is the only other person outside of London who truly fits the profile of an every down workhorse back in this system. As a result, you have to figure that he’s going to get quite a fair amount of carries on the year.

Banks will likely be the guy to come in on short-yardage and goal-line plays when London needs a rest. Think Jabari Davis back in the early 2000s when he backed up Travis Stephens. As a result, he’ll rack up some crucial stats this year, even if he doesn’t get the bulk of the carries.

At 6’1″ 211 pounds, the true freshman has potential that’s through the roof. He’s going to get his chances to demonstrate the earliest signs of that this year. Pruitt and Helton will want to get him ready to become the full-time starter when London leaves. And hey, there’s a chance he wins the job beforehand. So keep an eye on what he does.