Tennessee football: 10 Vols who should have breakout seasons in 2022

A deep collection of returning talent can make it hard for new players to explode, and that’s the situation Tennessee football finds itself in at many spots entering Josh Heupel’s second year. However, the Vols still have quite a few openings, and they run a deep enough rotation for new players to emerge.

There’s a reason Heupel went out for transfers at specific spots this past offseason. What about the returning talent, though? Well, as we get set to look at players who should begin to stand out, we’ll break down guys who have that chance after flying under the radar the past couple years.

All of these players were on last year’s roster but, for whatever reason, haven’t been able to make names for themselves just yet. Some are coming back from injury. Others have just been waiting for their chance. Taking those things into account, here are Tennessee football’s 10 most likely breakout players for 2022.

These are the Tennessee football Volunteers players who should burst onto the scene this year.

6’3″ 290 pounds

Technically, LaTrell Bumphus already had a breakout season. After spending time at tight end, he moved over to edge rusher in Jeremy Pruitt’s system, and in 2019, he had six tackles for a loss and two sacks. However, his production dipped significantly in 2020, and he moved over to defensive tackle in 2021 while playing most of the year hurt.

As a result, Bumphus enters this season looking to break out again. He’s the only player who fits this mold, but playing defensive tackle is obviously different from playing edge rusher. However, his experience, having been at UT since 2017, and the need there should help him.

Matthew Butler’s departure leaves a huge need at defensive tackle for Tennessee football, and Bumphus makes sense as the replacement to fill that void. He has competition from Kurott Garland and some newcomers, but he should be the one to start alongside Omari Thomas, especially with Aubrey Solomon gone.