Tennessee lost numerous veteran players from last year’s College Football Playoff team and as a result, the Volunteers will experience a bit of a youth movement at several key positions.
UT’s wide receiver room will lean heavily on a couple of first-year and second-year players. And the offensive line could feature a true freshman and a redshirt freshman at starting positions (David Sanders Jr and William Satterwhite).
The Vols will also feature some youth at the running back position with workhorse Dylan Sampson off to the NFL.
Suffice it to say, Tennessee has several “breakout candidates” entering the 2025 season.
ESPN, however, specifically pointed out sophomore wide receiver Mike Matthews as the Volunteers’ most likely breakout player this fall.
From ESPN: Matthews came in as a five-star receiver last season as a freshman but didn’t provide much production for a Tennessee offense that was lacking in explosive plays. He briefly flirted with transferring after the season but decided to return and is somebody the Vols desperately need to blossom and give them some firepower in the passing game. Matthews caught seven passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns last season. He has big-play ability written all over him, and with Tennessee losing seven receivers from last season’s team, there’s a chance for Matthews to live up to his billing.
Matthews, a former five-star recruit from Lilburn, GA, was rated as the No. 6 wide receiver in the nation during the 2024 recruiting cycle.
The 6-foot-1 wide receiver has NFL talent. He should quickly become quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s favorite target in the passing game.
Matthews caught just seven passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns as a true freshman in 2024. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he surpassed those numbers in Tennessee’s first game of the 2025 season.
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