As great as Josh Heupel and Tennessee have felt following the win over Kentucky, a massive, massive gut punch has arrived. Standout pass-rusher Tyree Weathersby suffered a serious knee injury in that victory over the 'Cats, and it was reported on Monday morning that he'll now be out for the rest of the season. On3's Austin Priceless was all over this devastating news, which marks the eighth season-ending injury for UT.
There's simply no way to sugarcoat things here. Losing Weathersby is beyond terrible, as he's been a major threat coming off the edge for Heupel and defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. He's No. 1 on the team with his seven sacks, giving opposing offenses all sorts of issues.
As things stand, Tennessee has one foot in the door for the College Football Playoff, but the Vols have to go 3-0 the rest of the way to lock in a spot. Not having Weathersby on the field for the last three contests of the year complicates things in a disastrous way, no question.
Stud Tennessee pass-rusher Tyree Weathersby is out for the season with a serious knee injury
Coming up in Week 11, the Vols will head to Texas A&M. I don't care how bad the Aggies and Marcel Reed have looked. Deep down, there's still a talented quarterback there, and if the Vols give him too much time to scan the field, he could give Tennessee issues. Remember when Tennessee faced a struggling South Carolina team? History can't repeat itself there.
Then in Week 12, LSU and Sam Leavitt will be at Neyland Stadium. Leavitt can hurt you, too, if not enough pressure is put on him. Sure, other guys, including Josh Norman, could step up and help fill the void here, but Weathersby has been nothing short of sensational this year. There's a reason his name has been called consistently throughout the season.
JUST IN: Tennessee defensive lineman Tyree Weathersby will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a knee injury in the win over Kentucky. ⤵️⤵️⤵️⤵️https://t.co/UPqBgRhRjk
— Austin Price (@AustinPriceless) November 9, 2026
Following the win over Kentucky, Tennessee is now No. 9 in the country, and the expectation is that a similar number should be coming for the second edition of the College Football Playoff rankings. That's the good news. That bad news, however, is that the Vols indeed have to win out to make sure they're in the CFP bracket.
The next three games are going to tell us a ton about how the Vols are able to handle this awful adversity on the defensive side of the ball. Xavier Gilliam, Marion Dye, Norman, and others will need to take their respective games to the next level up front. If that happens, it could help ease the pain of losing Weathersby, but this is still a giant loss for Heupel and Knowles. On a human level, you've got to feel pretty damn bad for him as well.
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