All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee football: Baylen Buchanan to miss second season

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Defensive back Baylen Buchanan #28 of the Tennessee Volunteers between plays during the game between the UTEP Miners and Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 24-0. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Defensive back Baylen Buchanan #28 of the Tennessee Volunteers between plays during the game between the UTEP Miners and Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 24-0. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Tennessee football Volunteers defensive back will be out for 2020.

For the second straight season, Tennessee football redshirt senior Baylen Buchanan has been ruled out. The veteran in the secondary missed all of 2019 due to surgery for spinal stenosis after starting in 2018.

Jeremy Pruitt said Monday in his zoom press conference that Buchanan is still dealing with a “medical issue.” However, he added that Buchanan has shown lots of improvements and will keep working to get better.

By sitting out a second season, Buchanan will have to apply for a sixth year of eligibility to play for Tennessee football in 2021. However, given the fact that a serious injury kept him out for two full seasons, he’ll likely have a great case.

A three-star commitment to Butch Jones’ system in 2016, Buchanan joined Nigel Warrior in that class as two sons of Pro Bowl defensive backs out of Georgia. He is the son of NFL star Ray Buchanan. When he arrived on campus at fall camp that year, he was the first player to have his helmet sticker removed for picking up the system so fast.

Related Story. Top 10 out of state Vols on 2020 roster. light

When Pruitt arrived, the 5’11” 197 product of Peachtree Ridge High School out of Lawrenceville, Ga., which is just outside of Atlanta, picked up the 3-4 scheme immediately. As a result, he was a starter for that year and proved he could play any position.

In three years on Rocky Top, Buchanan played in 31 games and made 13 starts, playing at cornerback, safety and nickel. After starting every game in 2018, he came away with three tackles for a loss, four pass deflections, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and 49 total tackles, 31 of which were solo.

This benching may work out for Buchanan. With nickel Shawn Shamburger and cornerback Bryce Thompson as Tennessee football’s best players, there was a chance he wouldn’t have played in 2020 anyway. However, Shamburger is a senior, and Thompson is likely to leave early for the NFL. Safety Theo Jackson is also a senior.

Next. Vols top 10 now-defunct rivalries. dark

All of this means Buchanan will have more room to find a starting role next year, provided he can get back into football shape. However, he has proven he can pick things up quickly, so it shouldn’t be too hard for him to get back into rhythm.

Home/Vols Football