Trey Smith leaves no doubt how he feels about Tennessee OL David Sanders, Jr.
The Chiefs’ star lineman laid out his thoughts on the Vols’ promising young tackle.
The Tennessee Vols have a potential star on their hands in the form of rising sophomore tackle David Sanders, Jr. The five-star out of Charlotte was Josh Heupel’s biggest win of the 2025 recruiting class, as he beat out Ryan Day and Ohio State for his services.
It took a little while for Sanders to get on the field last year, as he was dealing with an injury during the first month of the season. However, once he got on the field and got his feet wet, the talent showed itself quickly.
So, what is Sanders’ ceiling? According to another great Tennessee offensive lineman, there isn’t one. Trey Smith spoke about Sanders at the Dick’s House of Sport event in Knoxville over the weekend, and he says the sky is the limit for him.
Trey Smith had a lot of praise for Tennessee OL David Sanders, Jr.
“It’s just really cool to see a young guy sort of a similar position that I was in at a young age,” Smith said. “Starting as a freshman, doing his thing. I think he has no ceiling. He really has no limits to what he can become and what he can do at the next level and just having those conversations with him to stay focused.
“The think about Dave is he’s a great kid, a great man, and at the end of the day, he’s going to make the right decisions. I already see the development piece about it and, like, man, his future is so bright, so anything I can do to assist him, I’m just there as a resource and a vessel for him.”
The Vols will certainly need Sanders to be that limitless player this fall, as Tennessee works to break in a new starting quarterback in either Faizon Brandon or George MacIntyre.
But Sanders was certainly everything as advertised last season for Tennessee. According to Pro Football Focus, across 257 pass blocking snaps, he allowed 17 QB pressures and two sacks in 2025.
The Vols have a good one on their hands in Sanders, who should ultimately find his way onto an NFL roster. And until then, he’ll have one of the best players on the planet available to help him out along the way.