Tennessee football: 10 Vols most likely to win postseason awards in 2021

6’6″ 325 pounds; Hometown: Knoxville, Tenn.

There’s no scheme benefitting Cade Mays. He is on here solely due to his talent, which shouldn’t shock anybody. Mays appeared to struggle with consistency upon transferring to Tennessee football last year, but the COVID shutdown hindered his development, and the NCAA’s delay on granting his eligibility waiver served as a distraction for him as well.

Now, the legacy player and and graduate of Knox County’s Knoxville Catholic High School is ready to do for the Vols what he was supposed to do when he transferred from the Georgia Bulldogs at the end of the 2019 season. The former five-star who committed to UT in 2017 before backing out due to the Butch Jones saga is ready to live up to that initial hype.

With Trey Smith and Brandon Kennedy gone, there’s a lot of pressure on Mays to be elite as well. One thing that could hold him back from winning an award is his versatility, ironically, as the coaches may move him around a lot based on the depth in other spots.

However, Mays is still supremely talented and incredibly experienced everywhere on the line. The hype alone behind him will likely translate to postseason recognition if he’s able to play the entire season at one spot. That’s enough for us to put him on the list.