Tennessee football: 5 Vols who should see more action after bye week

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 24: Jauan Jennings #15 of the Tennessee Volunteers runs into the end zone with a 67-yard touchdown reception against the Florida Gators in the fourth quarter at Neyland Stadium on September 24, 2016 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Florida 38-28. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

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Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images /

A four-star junior college transfer, Jordan Allen was one of the splash members of the Tennessee football recruiting class when Jeremy Pruitt took over. He was a guy who easily could have ended up playing for Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide, but he chose the Vols.

We thought Allen would be able to jump in and make an immediate impact as a newcomer. Sure, Darrell Taylor and Jonathan Kongbo would be the starters at outside linebacker, but Allen would be in the rotation. Well, that doesn’t appear to have happened.

For the year, Allen has one tackle, and it came against the UTEP Miners. It seemed like he could operate at defensive end or outside linebacker to make an impact. But in addition to Kongbo, Taylor and Kyle Phillips doing more than him, he’s also seen less action than Matthew Butler and maybe even Deandre Johnson.

That doesn’t make sense for a guy who came in with so much hype. Perhaps he needed time to learn the system more, but what’s clear is the Vols need a deeper rotation going with their front seven. Allen is one of those guys who needs to get in on that rotation. So he needs to start emerging during this bye week.

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