Tennessee Vols RB DeSean Bishop was the victim of an NFL controversy against Arkansas that should be addressed at the college level
The UT ballcarrier was injured on a tackle that the NFL has banned.
Tennessee Vols RB DeSean Bishop saw his evening cut short on Saturday during UT’s game against the Arkansas Razorbacks, and it happened in a way that the NFL has cut down on in recent years.
Bishop was tackled in the third quarter of the Vols’ clash with the Hogs inside the Arkansas 10-yard line, but he was brought down by what was clearly a controversial hip drop tackle, a move that has since been banned by the NFL as a dangerous tackle.
Bishop, who suffered an unspecified leg injury on the tackle, left the game and was later ruled out, according to the SEC Network broadcast, although he fortunately got up and walked off the field under his own power.
Tennessee RB DeSean Bishop was injured and left the game due to a hip drop tackle
The injury was particularly unfortunate for Tennessee and Bishop, as he was having a heck of a game for the Vols on Saturday. He had accumulated 146 yards on the ground – a career high – with a touchdown.
A rule tabled by the NCAA Rules Committee in 2024, perhaps, could have helped avoid that injury to Bishop. The committee had considered banning the hip drop tackle, which, per the NFL, occurs when the defender grabs the runner with both hands or wraps with both arms and unweights himself by swiveling and dropping his hips and/or landing on and trapping the runner’s leg(s). The NFL banned it unanimously in March 2024. Days later, the Rules Committee voted to table the rule for future consideration.
It’s unfortunate that the NCAA chooses to be reactive to injuries when protecting players, and it’s particularly unfortunate that Bishop’s breakout game was derailed as a result. Hopefully, the rest of his season won’t be.
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