Tennessee football: Vols 10 biggest concerns for 2018 season

8. Lack of proven depth at linebacker

Tennessee football returns Darrin Kirkland Jr. from injury to join Quarte’ Sapp and Daniel Bituli on the inside. Jonathan Kongbo, Darrell Taylor and Jordan Allen are all additions on the outside. However, that makes for just six linebackers in the 3-4 system and only two who actually played the position last year.

As a result, there are numerous questions about linebacker depth for the Vols. Who’s going to be able to step up and shoulder the load if somebody gets hurt? After all, three of the guys we named were defensive linemen last year. Kirkland was hurt.

Deandre Johnson could add depth on the outside as another converted end. Dillon Bates, entering his fifth-year senior season, could finally live up to his four-star potential with the right coaching. Jeremy Pruitt and Kevin Sherrer have a lot of bodies to work with here.

However, a full two-deep rotation at each spot is not a given. And you have to wonder just how good of shape the Vols will be in if they can’t have that when the opener begins. There’s such a history of injuries among the inside linebackers in particular when you talk of Bates, Kirkland and Sapp that depth will be critical.

Can Shanon Reid, Solon Page III and Will Ignont finally emerge? What about Austin Smith, another converted defensive end? And when will JJ Peterson arrive? This may not be an issue when the season starts, but for now, there’s a lot of uncertainty here. So it’s a major question.