The Tennessee Vols aren’t batting 1.000 in the transfer portal this offseason (no one is), but Josh Heupel and his staff have made some impressive additions.

Tennessee has added several impact players on the defensive side of the ball, including EDGE Chaz Coleman, linebacker Amare Campbell, and cornerback Kayin Lee, among several others.

Offensively, the Vols didn’t have quite as many holes to fill. Tennessee added a quarterback, a tight end, a running back, and a couple of offensive linemen.

Only the offensive line transfer additions — Donovan Haslam and Ory Williams — are expected to compete for starting jobs.

The other offensive transfer additions were depth moves.

Did Tennessee do enough at running back?

Tennessee entered the offseason needing help at running back.

Sophomore running back Peyton Lewis announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal in December. That left Tennessee with DeSean Bishop and Daune Morris as its top two running back options.

Bishop, a former walk on, was terrific for the Vols in 2025, rushing for 1,076 yards and 16 touchdowns on 182 carries.

Morris, on the other hand, has limited experience, having rushed for just 133 yards and one touchdown on 35 carries as a true freshman in 2025.

Tennessee declined to pursue the top running back options in the transfer portal. Instead, they added Tulane transfer running back Javin Gordon, a former three-star recruit who rushed for 516 yards as a freshman this past season.

The only sure thing in Tennessee’s backfield right now is Bishop. Now, it’s worth noting that the Vols are high on Morris, and Gordon could be a hidden gem. For now, though, its unknown how they’ll perform in featured roles in Tennessee’s offense.

That’s why I think the Vols are at risk of repeating a mistake that cost the program in Tennessee’s final game of the 2024 season.

The Vols leaned heavily on running back Dylan Sampson in 2024. The Louisiana native carried the ball 258 times during his final season at Tennessee, which accounted for 55 percent of the Vols’ non-quarterback rushing attempts.

Sampson was Tennessee’s best offensive player in 2024 (he was the SEC offensive player of the year), but the heavy workload took a toll on the talented running back. In the Vols’ loss to Ohio State in the first round of the College Football Playoff, Sampson was limited to just three touches because he was banged up.

“A lot of people thought I got hurt in that game (against Ohio State),” said Sampson last spring. “But no, I was dealing with a hamstring injury from (the) Vandy (game) and it was lingering and I was trying to talk positive. It was feeling good. The only thing I didn’t have that week of practice was contact and I tried to go out and give my all for my team but it just wasn’t going. I would have been a liability out there and I didn’t want to get anybody else hurt or further injure myself.”

ESPN’s Greg McElroy thought not having Sampson was one of the biggest reasons why Tennessee was blown out by Ohio State.

“It shows you that without Dylan Sampson, and him not having really any impact whatsoever, the team is just not where they need to be,” said McElroy after the game. “It’s a good solid team. They play hard, they’re super physical, there’s a lot of things to like about what Tennessee had. But the star of the show all season long was Dylan Sampson. When Dylan Sampson was not there on the field, it was going to be a huge issue for Tennessee.”

The Vols could be facing a similar situation with Bishop in 2026.

Josh Heupel’s offense has been at its most effective when the running backs can share the load somewhat evenly. The run game is a big part of Tennessee’s offense, and keeping the running backs fresh is key.

In 2025, Bishop received 44 percent of the Vols’ non-quarterback rushing attempts. Tennessee is losing 42 percent of its non-quarterback rushing attempts (via Star Thomas and Peyton Lewis).

Tennessee essentially has to replace 42 percent of its running back workload from last season. Do we think Morris, Gordon, and Justin Baker (14 rushing attempts for UT in 2025) are going to make up that entire 42 percent?

I think that’s unlikely. I think it’s very possible that we see Bishop account for 50 to 55 percent of Tennessee’s carries next season.

And if that’s the case, how will he hold up against a nine game SEC conference schedule? Will Bishop fare better than Sampson did in 2024? Or will he break down similarly?

It’s obviously impossible to answer that question. But by not bringing in a top transfer running back this offseason, the Vols have put themselves at risk of once again overworking their top running back.

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