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Tennessee football: Projecting two-deep depth chart for 2022

By Caleb Calhoun

Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) hands the ball off to Tennessee running back Jabari Small (2) during an SEC conference game between Tennessee and Vanderbilt at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 27, 2021.Kns Tennessee Vanderbilt Football
Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) hands the ball off to Tennessee running back Jabari Small (2) during an SEC conference game between Tennessee and Vanderbilt at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 27, 2021.Kns Tennessee Vanderbilt Football /
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Nov 27, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers running back Jabari Small (2) after running for a touchdown against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 27, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers running back Jabari Small (2) after running for a touchdown against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /

Running back

1. Jabari Small

Again, this is no surprise. Jabari Small stepped in as Tennessee football’s full-time starter once Tiyon Evans hit the transfer portal last year. He finished the season with 796 yards and nine touchdowns on 141 carries (5.6 yards per attempt) while also catching nine passes for 77 yards.

Entering his junior year, the Memphis kid has more competition with newcomers Dylan Sampson and Justin Williams, but he’s clearly the feature back. In fact, he may even see a larger role this year, and with Josh Heupel’s offense always going through running backs, this guy could become a national star.

2. Jaylen Wright

Evans’ entry into the transfer portal allowed for Jaylen Wright to see more action. Wright is a speedster who needs to work on his power, but he had 85 carries for 409 yards (4.8 yards per carry) and four touchdowns while catching six passes for 22 yards. This year, he figures to be the Vols’ all-purpose back while Small is the feature back.

3. Justin Williams-Thomas

At full strength, Tennessee football would have run Small as the feature back, Wright as the all-purpose back, and Len’Neth Whitehead as the power back. However, Whitehead is now out for the season, so they’ll likely run two feature backs. That’s where Williams-Thomas comes into play, as a three-back set is still the goal for this rotation.

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