David Sanders Jr. Listed as Impact Freshman for 2025 Season

[WillisWG]

Tennessee Volunteers David Sanders Jr. Listed as Impact Freshman for 2025 Season

The Tennessee Volunteers are projected to have one of the biggest true freshmen during the 2025 college football season.

www.si.com

The college football season is fast approaching as teams prepare for the beginning of the 2025 regular season. With so much roster overturn taking place in the sport, many teams are expected to rely on true freshmen to succeed. Luckily for Tennessee, the Volunteers are expected to have one of the nation's best in 2025.

 

[mitzustu]

Hope so. No depth at tackle. Don’t know why LJ3 left

 

[orangebloodgmc]

Hope so. No depth at tackle. Don’t know why LJ3 left

Gave a like for your 2nd sentence, while not really agreeing with your one about depth.

Heard, Sanders, Warren will probably get us thru. In event of worse luck, injury-wise, we could still plug in Perry or the other Heard.

It is my understanding that we typically rotate about 8 guys in the OL; I think we easily have that, with the ones named above, plus Umarov, Pendleton, Moe, Satterwhite, and backup center from TX whose name I am not recalling. Green? Sure they are, but they will be less so after Syracuse and ETSU.

Edit: Max Anderson. Also, forgot Gage Ginther (I think we still have him).

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

He better be. He's getting paid like a pro so we need pro results.

 

[BigBadVol]

He better be. He's getting paid like a pro so we need pro results.

Really? How much is he getting paid? You sound jealous.

 

[DaddyChad]

Really? How much is he getting paid? You sound jealous.

I’m not jealous and I have no idea what he’s getting paid but we gave him a better NIL deal than Ohio State. Understand also that Ohio state had one of the best classes in the nation but the one area they didn’t address with an elite player was at OT. Idk what Tennessee gave him or anything else but they did a damn fine job in that recruitment and I bet he’s well compensated

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

You sound jealous.

Not jealous. Just saying the days of he's just a freshman are over. We're paying him top of the market money. How else do you think we landed him? He basically had Ohio State and us in a bidding war for his services all the way to signing day.

I'm happy he's getting paid. Now he has to prove he's worth the money. College football is like the NFL now. If you're getting paid top of the market money then you'll have top of the market expectations.

 

[Brave Volunteer]

Not jealous. Just saying the days of he's just a freshman are over. We're paying him top of the market money. How else do you think we landed him? He basically had Ohio State and us in a bidding war for his services all the way to signing day.

I'm happy he's getting paid. Now he has to prove he's worth the money. College football is like the NFL now. If you're getting paid top of the market money then you'll have top of the market expectations.

This is a bad take. The money doesnt magically change the fact that Sanders will be starting as a true freshman in the SEC. The money doesnt erase that, nor does it erase the fact that he's GOING to do "freshman" things on the field this season.

Frankly, it speaks more to this staff's lack of recruiting and development to add depth at that position for the last 5 years than it will Sander's performance this season. Asking a true freshman to come in and start on the OLine in the SEC is a lot on that kid, and its more of an indictment on our staff's poor recruiting and development.

 

[NighthawkVol]

Hope so. No depth at tackle. Don’t know why LJ3 left

So he can start. Seems obvious.If you start, you command more NIL. It was obvious he wouldn't start at Tennessee with Sanders coming in.

 

[OrangeBeachVol]

Gave a like for your 2nd sentence, while not really agreeing with your one about depth.

Heard, Sanders, Warren will probably get us thru. In event of worse luck, injury-wise, we could still plug in Perry or the other Heard.

It is my understanding that we typically rotate about 8 guys in the OL; I think we easily have that, with the ones named above, plus Umarov, Pendleton, Moe, Satterwhite, and backup center from TX whose name I am not recalling. Green? Sure they are, but they will be less so after Syracuse and ETSU.

Read an article awhile back on Heard that said he played half of last season injured and admitted he was too overweight to be quick enough to play his position. Said he has gotten healthy and lost weight for this season to address the issues. Hope he becomes the steady player we need.

 

[VOLywood]

I'd rather have an o-line of fully developed 3-star 4th and 5th year guys than 4/5-star freshmen and sophomores.

 

[LegionnaireOfTheMiserable]

This is a bad take. The money doesnt magically change the fact that Sanders will be starting as a true freshman in the SEC. The money doesnt erase that, nor does it erase the fact that he's GOING to do "freshman" things on the field this season.

Frankly, it speaks more to this staff's lack of recruiting and development to add depth at that position for the last 5 years than it will Sander's performance this season. Asking a true freshman to come in and start on the OLine in the SEC is a lot on that kid, and its more of an indictment on our staff's poor recruiting and development.

The money likely had something to do with us not going out and getting an experienced starter, so he’s going to need to be better than most freshmen out there.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

This is a bad take. The money doesnt magically change the fact that Sanders will be starting as a true freshman in the SEC. The money doesnt erase that, nor does it erase the fact that he's GOING to do "freshman" things on the field this season.

Frankly, it speaks more to this staff's lack of recruiting and development to add depth at that position for the last 5 years than it will Sander's performance this season. Asking a true freshman to come in and start on the OLine in the SEC is a lot on that kid, and its more of an indictment on our staff's poor recruiting and development.

If he wasn't viewed as a plug n play starter he wouldn't have gotten paid what he got paid. You don't get into bidding wars with Ohio State for a guy who needs 2-3 years of development to be a solid starter. We've seen true freshman #1 tackles be plug n play starters on day 1. David Sanders needs to be 2013 Laremy Tunsil given what he's being paid.

 

[OmahaOmaha]

I'd rather have an o-line of fully developed 3-star 4th and 5th year guys than 4/5-star freshmen and sophomores.

Agree!

 

[WillisWG]

I'd rather have an o-line of fully developed 3-star 4th and 5th year guys than 4/5-star freshmen and sophomores.

Seen that, never want to see it again.

 

[Brave Volunteer]

If he wasn't viewed as a plug n play starter he wouldn't have gotten paid what he got paid. You don't get into bidding wars with Ohio State for a guy who needs 2-3 years of development to be a solid starter. We've seen true freshman #1 tackles be plug n play starters on day 1. David Sanders needs to be 2013 Laremy Tunsil given what he's being paid.

Do you really think OSU would be starting him this season as a true freshman if he had committed to them? We're doing it out of necessity because we built no quality depth there over the last 5 years.

 

[orangebloodgmc]

I'd rather have an o-line of fully developed 3-star 4th and 5th year guys than 4/5-star freshmen and sophomores.

It's just hard to generalize. Good players can happen either way. FIVE-stars are very rare, but we do have one. "Freshmen" can range from new arrivals in August, to red-shirt freshmen who were there 16 months before that. And some hard-working, under-rated "3-stars" who bleed orange could exceed all that. Best not to generalize too much, and leave it to our coaches who are paid more than you or I.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

Do you really think OSU would be starting him this season as a true freshman if he had committed to them? We're doing it out of necessity because we built no quality depth there over the last 5 years.

Why not? Alabama used to regularly start true freshman under Nick Saban (even at offensive line). That's what happens when you recruit #1 players at their position. The expectation is they play right away. The whole waiting a few years for a guy to develop is what poverty programs do.

If David Sanders is a true top recruit in the country then he should be a plug n play starter immediately.

 

[Brave Volunteer]

Why not? Alabama used to regularly start true freshman under Nick Saban (even at offensive line). That's what happens when you recruit #1 players at their position. The expectation is they play right away. The whole waiting a few years for a guy to develop is what poverty programs do.

If David Sanders is a true top recruit in the country then he should be a plug n play starter immediately.

I just do not believe guys who play in the trenches have enough time to develop the physical and mental maturity necessary to start as true freshman at this level. They need at least a year in a college S&C program to develop the strength and explosiveness needed, and to help combat the toll a season in the SEC takes on the body at that position. I think about poor Michael Munoz who was a highly touted 5 star guy who started here as a true freshman. He ended up being plagued with injuries his whole career here. Would it still have happened if he had redshirted his freshman year? Who knows but I certainly don't think it helped that he had to start immediately without time develop first.

 

[walkenvol]

I just do not believe guys who play in the trenches have enough time to develop the physical and mental maturity necessary to start as true freshman at this level. They need at least a year in a college S&C program to develop the strength and explosiveness needed, and to help combat the toll a season in the SEC takes on the body at that position. I think about poor Michael Munoz who was a highly touted 5 star guy who started here as a true freshman. He ended up being plagued with injuries his whole career here. Would it still have happened if he had redshirted his freshman year? Who knows but I certainly don't think it helped that he had to start immediately without time develop first.

Trey Smith was effective as a freshman - why can’t Sanders be also?

 

[Brave Volunteer]

Trey Smith was effective as a freshman - why can’t Sanders be also?

Wasn't Trey's freshman season cut short due to a blood clotting issue?

 

[1morevol]

I just do not believe guys who play in the trenches have enough time to develop the physical and mental maturity necessary to start as true freshman at this level. They need at least a year in a college S&C program to develop the strength and explosiveness needed, and to help combat the toll a season in the SEC takes on the body at that position. I think about poor Michael Munoz who was a highly touted 5 star guy who started here as a true freshman. He ended up being plagued with injuries his whole career here. Would it still have happened if he had redshirted his freshman year? Who knows but I certainly don't think it helped that he had to start immediately without time develop first.

Munoz couldn't block his own shadow yet still made All-American based on his last name.

 

[Brave Volunteer]

Munoz couldn't block his own shadow yet still made All-American based on his last name.

Munoz was plagued with injuries almost his whole time here. I truly believe starting him from day one as a true freshman was detrimental to his potential. He should've been given time to develop.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

I just do not believe guys who play in the trenches have enough time to develop the physical and mental maturity necessary to start as true freshman at this level. They need at least a year in a college S&C program to develop the strength and explosiveness needed, and to help combat the toll a season in the SEC takes on the body at that position. I think about poor Michael Munoz who was a highly touted 5 star guy who started here as a true freshman. He ended up being plagued with injuries his whole career here. Would it still have happened if he had redshirted his freshman year? Who knows but I certainly don't think it helped that he had to start immediately without time develop first.

Once again you're just focusing on our history lately as a poverty program. Alabama has repeatedly had true freshman start on the offensive line and perform at a high level. As was mentioned earlier when we landed a true #1 player in the country like Trey Smith he started right away and played at a high level. Laremy Tunsil a decade ago started as a true freshman for Ole Miss and was arguably the best tackle in the country as a true freshman.

Truly great players play at a high level immediately. Even at offensive line. We're just not used to it cause we've not been good enough to get them on a regular basis. But to the programs who have been getting #1 players at their position like Alabama they know true freshman can play right away at a high level even on the offensive line. If David Sanders is a true #1 player at his position then he should play at a high level right away.

 

[1morevol]

Munoz was plagued with injuries almost his whole time here. I truly believe starting him from day one as a true freshman was detrimental to his potential. He should've been given time to develop.

I agree. True for most freshmen.