Tennessee football: 15 potential dark-horse Vols for 2019 season

With the retirement of Darrin Kirkland Jr., Tennessee football had a wide open competition for that starting inside linebacker spot alongside Daniel Bituli. Solon Page III was among the players to compete for that spot along with three other returning players and two newcomers, but on the depth chart, he’s one of the guys listed as a clear backup.

Don’t count him out, though. Despite only playing in one game so far, as a redshirt freshman against the Missouri Tigers, Page is a player with a good bit of potential. At 6’2″ 218 pounds, he was one of the top players in the spring and actually earned a role on the first team in the Orange and White game.

That wouldn’t be the case if Jeremy Pruitt didn’t see some level of potential in him. As a result, he’s on this list as a guy who could surprisingly work his way into the depth chart and burst onto the scene. Despite what Pruitt has listed in the depth chart, that spot is still open for competition. And Bituli being banged up this week gives a bunch of guys more opportunities to step up.

Page may have a lower likelihood than other linebackers to get into that rotation. But because of how thin the unit as a whole is when it comes to proven depth, he’s a dark-horse to at least be a solid role player.