For as loaded as Tennessee football is on the defensive line, they may be more loaded on the offensive line. Every starter from last season is returning, and the Vols added five-star transfer Cade Mays, who should end up getting an eligibility waiver from the NCAA to play. So Mays, Trey Smith and Brandon Kennedy could make up a veteran interior line.
On the outside, Wanya Morris and Darnell Wright both started as freshmen last year and have those roles locked up. Then you have rotational guys, including Riley Locklear, K’Rojhn Calbert, Jahmir Johnson and Jerome Carvin. Taking all this into account, assuming Jeremy Pruitt and Jim Chaney want to run a 10-man rotation, there’s only one more spot available.
Chris Akporoghene, Jackson Lampley and Ollie Lane are all returning players who could be competing for that spot. Three-star freshman offensive linemen are not among those players. As a result, Javontez Spraggins should take a redshirt. The 6’3″ 300-pound East St. Louis, Ill. prospect is likely a development project, but this will not be the year he sees the field.
It’s almost a certainty that Pruitt and Chaney will redshirt Spraggins. There are just too many bodies in the rotation this year for him to see the field, especially since he plays offensive guard, which is the most loaded part of the line. As a result, a year to redshirt and put on some size could make him a key player in 2019, when at least four linemen from 2020 will be gone.