Tennessee Vols’ postseason luck proved why Josh Heupel’s often questioned strategy is the right one
At times during the 2022 and 2023 seasons, there were plenty of folks — fans and media — who questioned why Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel didn't give dynamic running back Dylan Sampson more carries. Heupel used a "three-headed monster" at running back in 2022 and 2023, rotating carries between Jabari Small, Jaylen Wright, […]
At times during the 2022 and 2023 seasons, there were plenty of folks — fans and media — who questioned why Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel didn't give dynamic running back Dylan Sampson more carries.
Heupel used a "three-headed monster" at running back in 2022 and 2023, rotating carries between Jabari Small, Jaylen Wright, and Sampson.
Sampson was the most electric player of those three, but he lost quite a few carries to Wright and Small.
Here's how the carries broke down between Tennessee's "three-headed monster" in 2022 and 2023:
2022
Jabari Small — 157 carries
Jaylen Wright — 146 carries
Dylan Sampson — 58 carries
2023
Jaylen Wright — 137 carries
Dylan Sampson — 106 carries
Jabari Small — 95 carries
The most common thing we heard from fans/media who questioned Tennessee's running back rotation was that Sampson should've received more carries than he did (specifically over Small, who was a solid player for the Vols, but not as dynamic/fast as Wright and Sampson).
It was an understandable critique as Sampson showed numerous times that he's a big play threat every time he touches the ball.
In 2024, fans got their wish as Sampson became Tennessee's bell cow running back, which led to the Baton Rouge native setting a Vols single-season record for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns (1,491 yards and 22 touchdowns).
Sampson, however, broke down near the end of the 2024 season after carrying the ball 258 times in his junior season.
Dylan Sampson's carries by month in 2024
September (includes season opener on August 31): 69
October: 75
November: 112
December: 2
In Sampson's first two seasons at Tennessee, he had 164 total carries.
Prior to the 2024 season, no player had carried the ball more than 166 times during Heupel's first three seasons as the head coach of the program. (those 166 carries actually came from quarterback Hendon Hooker in 2021…the most carries by a Vols running back under Heupel before 2024 was 157 from Jabari Small in 2022).
The 2024 season saw Sampson's workload increase significantly and as a result, he was a non-factor in Tennessee's biggest game of the year — a first round College Football Playoff matchup in Columbus against Ohio State.
After being the focus of the Vols' offense for the entire season, Sampson saw just three touches against the Buckeyes (two carries for six yards and one reception for two yards) due to injury.
"End of the Vandy game, [Sampson] got dinged up," said Heupel after the loss to Ohio State. "And it was soft tissue, and [he] had been out the first couple weeks (of December) and got back with us. Started building him through the week. Felt like he was in a good spot. Anticipated him not having the same type of load that he normally would have. Just early in the game, kind of re-tweaked it and wasn’t available there for a while."
"We knew Dylan wasn’t at 100 percent," added Vols offensive coordinator Joey Halzle after the loss to the Buckeyes. "We knew he was going to go early and he was going to give it a shot. Whenever that guy is not at 100 percent, you know, he’s SEC offensive Player of the Year, right, he makes everything go. So losing him and actually not even having him at full speed was tough. But that’s part of the job, is when you’re not healthy, when you’re not 100 percent, what are you going to do to get the job done. We didn’t get it done tonight."
Heupel's decision to rotate three running backs in 2022 and 2023 allowed those players to stay fresh (or as fresh as running backs can be in the SEC) throughout the season.
Leaning on Sampson was necessary at times in 2024, but the extra workload undoubtedly took its toll on the former four-star recruit. Sampson was quite banged up by the end of the year. There's no one that wanted be on the field against Ohio State more than Sampson, but he simply couldn't go because of the wear and tear his body took all season.
Because Heupel's offense relies so heavily on the run, it's imperative that the program continues to utilize a "three-headed monster" at running back. That's obviously going to look different from season to season based on the talent on the roster, but it's clear that a heavy workload like Sampson received in 2024 isn't wise with an extended college football post-season that results in the teams that are competing for the national championship playing 15 or 16 games.
In 2025, Peyton Lewis and DeSean Bishop are expected to serve as the Vols' top two running backs with Sampson off to the NFL. Tennessee needs to find a third option — either a true freshman (2025 signee Daune Morris maybe?) or via the NCAA transfer portal — to serve in that No. 3 running back role. That's a role that flies under-the-radar a bit, but it's going to be incredibly important when it comes to Tennessee having late-season success.
