Tennessee football fall position battles: Who will start opposite of Kennan Pili?

The college football season is almost here and fans are biting at the bit to sit on the couch and watch countless hours of football on Saturdays, or go to tailgates for their favorite team and celebrate all their favorite traditions in a game.

When the season comes around, there are still questions around each team, including questions about certain position battles.

There are a lot of questions answered this season for Tennessee football, like who is leading the team at the quarterback position, who the top receiver is, and so on and so forth. However, there are some questions about certain positions that need to be answered and will probably be answered in fall camp or early in the season.

So what are some of the biggest questions and fall position battles for Tennessee football heading into the 2024 season?

Who will start opposite linebacker Keenan Pili?

Tennessee linebacker Keenan Pili is entering his sixth college football season, and his second with the Volunteers after spending four years at BYU. Head coach Josh Heupel had a lot of praise for Pili during SEC Media Days and acknowledged how Pili would be a starter at the linebacker position for the Volunteers.

So the question is who will start alongside of Pili at the linebacker position? Right now there are three possible [layers that could have the other linebacker position and they are Arion Carter, Kalib Perry, and Jalen Smith. Right now the the guy projected to be the starter is Carter who only had 17 total tackles in 2023 and one pass defended.

Who will be the third wide receiver?

Right now the third receiver position on the field is between Dont'e Thornton and Squirrel White. The battle for the spot is a close one, even though it may not seem like it. Thornton had only 13 receptions for 224 yards and a touchdown but averaged 17.2 yards per catch. White on the flip side had more receptions and yards with 67 receptions and 803 yards along with two touchdowns, but only averaged 12 yards per catch.

White had a higher production in 2023 but Thornton had a better yards-per-catch than White did. Thornton has less experience in the Tennessee offense with only one year under his belt after spending two seasons at Oregon and White has had two seasons with Tennessee spending his whole college career with the Volunteers.

Who will be the Volunteers left guard?

The left guard position is probably the biggest position battle for Tennessee this fall. There are a lot of different players that could be in the left guard position including Andrej Karic, who started a couple of games last season before getting injured, Jackson Lampley, and Shamurad Umarov.

The left guard position is one that can be a rotation, but to have a cohesive offensive line, it is good to have a primary guard. Right now Jackson is projected to be the starter, but truly it is anyone's game right now.