Lenneth Whitehead out for the season

#52
#52
He’s slow. IDK if he would have made a good to great Lb and play at the next level but it appears he will not get to the next level playing Rb and at this point in his college career and has barely contributed anything to the Vols.
Getting to the next level does not always equate to a good college player. How many RBs has Tenn. but in the pros lately? He will be a Sophomore, last year was his first year playing. He started out at lb. then was moved to RB. I'm sure you realize that every play he was in (88) to be exact he was not running the ball. He was very solid in pass protection and when he did carry the ball he did a solid job. He didn't play in 4 or 5 ball games if you remember because of an injury. To say he didn't contribute might fit your argument but he contributed enough to be named SEC freshman of the week against a SEC team.
 
#54
#54
He’s slow. IDK if he would have made a good to great Lb and play at the next level but it appears he will not get to the next level playing Rb and at this point in his college career and has barely contributed anything to the Vols.

Lol to be fair he's only played 1 year of college ball so far, not sure we want to write him off so early. If I remember correctly he was also coming off an injury his Sr year of high school.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orangebloodgmc
#55
#55
Can’t fix SLOW! Sucks he got hurt but it’s really only a loss on paper, unless they start doing more FB type sets. Anything in portal probably an upgrade. Carry on!
 
  • Like
Reactions: dduncan4163
#56
#56
Guess the need for a portal addition just went up. Hate for this guy,seems to be one of those athletically gifted guys that is wound to tight.

This makes me 0-2 from that class in projecting lower ranked guys working out due to raw physical contruction.... He and Beckwith were my picks that year....
Hate to hear this. Hopefully the back from Bishop Gorman will come in & make an impact. More on Small. Get in there Jabari. Get us a 1000 yard year. You can do it.
 
#57
#57
Not exactly correct. Here is what we currently have:

2 Jabari Small Jr. RB 5' 11" 213 2L Memphis, Tenn.Briarcrest Christian
20 Jaylen Wright So. RB 5' 11" 200 1L Durham, N.C.Southern
24 Dylan Sampson Fr. RB 5' 11" 190 HS Baton Rouge, La.Dutchtown
26 Justin Williams-Thomas Fr. RB 6' 0" 210 HS Dallas, Ga.East Paulding
27 Len'Neth Whitehead R-So. RB 6' 2" 220 1L Athens, Ga.Athens Academy -OUT
35 Patrick Wilk R-Fr. RB 5' 11" 200 1L Nashville, Tenn.Montgomery Bell Academy
42 Hunter Barnes Fr. RB 6' 0" 190 HS Memphis, Tenn.Memphis School

2022 Football Roster - University of Tennessee Athletics
Not trying to be negative, but not a good looking running back room. Maybe a linebacker or two?
 
  • Like
Reactions: dduncan4163
#59
#59
This is the main reason why we should be happy with 8-4. We still lack depth in many key spots and we get hit hard by the injury bug no matter our coach. A healthy club could be 10-2 but history tells me we won't be a healthy club come mid to late October.
 
#61
#61
I also observed Whitehead in mop up duty. Nowhere near the speed and explosiveness of any of those 4.

On the other hand....Last year we had Banks, Beasley, and Solon Page at ILB.......

Whitehead was an incredible ILB as a prep in GA. I'm willing to bet at some point he's been given the choice to compete for a starting spot on defense or be 4th team running back.

It's terrible that he's banged up, and like I said, he was a solid contributor on Special Teams, particularly kickoff return as a blocker and fair catching sky kicks....but his role on offense wouldn't have even been as significant as it was last season IMO.

For vol fans, that's a good thing, right? Williams-Thomas is 215 lbs and runs 4.4. Sampson was one of the fastest kids in the country. With his experience and size, he'd obviously be a better blocker which I know was an area of concern last season. But how could one assume he'd be getting those guys touches?
 
Last edited:
#68
#68
Guess the need for a portal addition just went up. Hate for this guy,seems to be one of those athletically gifted guys that is wound to tight.

This makes me 0-2 from that class in projecting lower ranked guys working out due to raw physical contruction.... He and Beckwith were my picks that year....
I think we all thought Beckwith had the potential to be a stud.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orangebloodgmc
#69
#69
If you watch last years Missouri game Whitehead really stood out with his runs and pass protection. He will be missed. Was counting on him to be a good short yardage back that the team needs so badly.
I’m not downplaying the severity of what his loss means to our team, but with all due respect to Whitehead, even my YPC were high and QB protections were highly rated by PFF vs Mizzou last season.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BreatheUT
#70
#70
I hate it for the kid but is he really that much of a difference maker at RB?

Doesn’t really have the speed nor the explosiveness to be an SEC level RB.
 
  • Like
Reactions: keenobserver
#71
#71
He had one of the more humorous highlight tapes I ever remember as a recruit. He played in a private school league in Georgia and he looked like a grown man playing against 7th graders.
He was a big RB for any level of HS. The A private division he played in produces a lot of D1 talent every year… Georgia shook up sports this year with a private school “multiplier” or formula that has sent many of the private schools up a level or 2. So if you are a player that is out of a set zone and playing for a school you count as 3 students… Some schools such as the school where Christian Harris went gets kids from all over as it’s connected to MARTA and is well thought if for education and sports…
 
  • Like
Reactions: Volfan1000
#72
#72
Guess the need for a portal addition just went up. Hate for this guy,seems to be one of those athletically gifted guys that is wound to tight.

This makes me 0-2 from that class in projecting lower ranked guys working out due to raw physical contruction.... He and Beckwith were my picks that year....


We do need some running back depth and best wishes to Whitehead on a speedy recovery.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orangebloodgmc
#73
#73
This makes us pretty thin at RB. Only 4 on the roster and two of them are True Freshmen.
Think running back that landed at Ole Miss would have been a nice addition. I like Heupel a lot but don’t see him hitting portal very hard. Best players already gone from it. We have needs everywhere. We’ve got to land some 4* & 5* recruits in our next recruits. We are so far behind Bama , Ga, LSU & Fl in SEC., ND, Clem only getting better. So Cal, Tex, Ok, A&M on the rise. Or, Pn St, Mich, Mich St, Fl St, Miami becoming very competitive. We have to have a top 5 recruiting class each year. We have to become the cool school to come to. NIL $ needs to be at the max.
 
#74
#74
He was a big RB for any level of HS. The A private division he played in produces a lot of D1 talent every year… Georgia shook up sports this year with a private school “multiplier” or formula that has sent many of the private schools up a level or 2. So if you are a player that is out of a set zone and playing for a school you count as 3 students… Some schools such as the school where Christian Harris went gets kids from all over as it’s connected to MARTA and is well thought if for education and sports…
Not dissing the kid, just saying that video was funny as hell.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 99Vol
#75
#75
Look for someone like Calloway from the WR room to move over to RB during fall camp. Do you think that would be an option? Most of these guys played multiple positions in high school and I am sure RB was one of them so maybe we have someone that would or could move over, for depth if we do not get a transfer add on.
 

VN Store



Back
Top