Tennessee football Smokey Points: Top 5 Vols performers at South Carolina

Eli Wolf didn’t just get on here because of the stats, but they do count. Wolf caught a touchdown pass from Jarrett Guarantano on Tennessee football’s second offensive drive to give the Vols a 7-0 lead in the game.

But on top of that, Wolf’s blocking helped to offset the massive shortcomings on the offensive line. That unit was still awful, but Ty Chandler and Tim Jordan were able to break a few plays running the ball. And Carlin Fils-Aime did that too with a touchdown run.

That was largely due to the blocking Wolf was delivering on the outside, giving the guys more flexibility. Don’t get me wrong, the protection as a whole was horrible, but Wolf was a rare standout guy in this situation.

Thanks to his play, the Vols did have 144 yards rushing on the day, and the running backs had 26 carries for 136 yards. True, this was largely due to playing a much weaker defensive front than in recent weeks. But you still saw marked improvement in the running game.

We’re attributing that to Wolf’s blocking. He came up huge in the passing game and in protection, and for that, he makes this list. After being named the most improved guy in the spring, Wolf may finally be stepping out of his brother’s shadow.