Tennessee football: Top 10 position battles in Vols 2019 fall camp

3. Defensive end

Candidates: 

Matthew Butler; John Mincey; LaTrell Bumphus

While defensive tackle at least has the bodies to replace Shy Tuttle and Alexis Johnson, Tennessee football looks like it’s about to take a major step back at defensive end. Kyle Phillips was the best player on the line for the Vols last year, and Jeremy Pruitt did not adequately find a transfer to be an elite replacement for him.

As a result, he spent the offseason having to find the next man up. In the spring, Matthew Butler began to stand out. Butler was on the first team in the Orange and White game, and he is clearly the favorite heading into fall camp.

But he’s the favorite based on projections. In reality, this position is wide open. The other true defensive end on the roster who could make a push is John Mincey. And now that he’s settled in at defensive end after playing multiple positions, don’t count out LaTrell Bumphus.

All three of these guys have an equal shot at winning the starting role at defensive end. If none of them stand out, Pruitt could potentially just turn to three defensive tackles to play up front. He clearly likes a lot of size.

Simply put, this is going to be a major competition in fall camp. Somebody’s got to stand out at defensive end to somewhat offset the loss of Phillips’s elite playmaking abilities. If they don’t the Vols could be in serious trouble. So yes, this is a major position battle.