The Tennessee Volunteers received a blow to their secondary last week when defensive back Jourdan Thomas went down with a knee injury that ended his season. In the past couple of years, this injury would be a devastating blow to a thin group that already wasn't super talented. This year is different.
Thomas would have been starting at the star position, basically the nickel corner in Tim Banks' defense. Last season, this was Tamarion McDonald's spot, who went down with an injury late in the season and was replaced by walk-on Will Brooks. Anybody who watched the Georgia game will tell you that Will Brooks is not a good enough athlete to be your relied-on starter at that position in the SEC.
This season, Thomas will be replaced by either redshirt sophomore Christian Harrison or true freshman Boo Carter, both of whom have received high praise this training camp. This is a welcome change with all the newfound depth in the secondary, but fortunately for the Vols, this is a teamwide improvement. While, unfortunately, injuries will come this season, the Vols will handle them better than ever.
Depth is a strength for the Vols
Last season, injuries to key positions drastically changed the Vols' ability to perform. Cooper Mays missed the first month of the season, Bru McCoy went down for the season against South Carolina, Keenan Pili was lost for the season in the first game against Virginia, and seemingly, the entire secondary was on second- and third-string guys by the Citrus Bowl.
The offensive line never seemed quite right without Mays. Bru was the Vols' only true difference maker at receiver last season. The Vols' linebacking corps consisted almost completely of freshmen after Pili went down. As mentioned earlier, Will Brooks started out of position in the secondary late in the season. These are not winning circumstances.
This season, the entire team has been bolstered in the 2nd and even 3rd ranks in some position groups. The defensive line has 10-12 guys that you would feel starting on an SEC defensive line, the receiver room has 6-7 guys who all will be fighting for playing time, the tight end group has three reliable players, the linebacking group has a ton of experience after Pili returned and all the young guys got all those valuable reps last season, and the secondary has been bolstered by both high school recruiting and the transfer portal, despite losing everybody from last years' group.
The offensive line, quarterbacks, and running back rooms still have some questions about depth, but there's still some promise in the younger, unproven guys in all three circumstances. It's also hard to be deep everywhere in the transfer portal era, so having some questions is normal for every team.
Tennessee will suffer more injuries this season, some more than others, but the Vols are more prepared this year than they have been any other year under Heupel to handle them. Ultimately, in football, it's the next man up, and the Vols are ready with more men.