Tennessee has a big concern in the final four games of the regular season, but head coach Josh Heupel doesn’t seem worried about it
There’s one big concern that Tennessee has over the final month of the season, but Vols head coach Josh Heupel doesn’t seem too concerned about it.
There’s a growing concern entering the final month of the season about how Tennessee Vols running back DeSean Bishop is going to hold up.
Bishop is arguably the Vols’ most valuable offensive player — he makes the offense go — but he’s taking a beating this season.
The former walk-on has 180 touches through the first eight games of the season. He’s averaging 29 carries per game over his last four games.
Bishop is currently on pace to finish the season with 270 total touches.
If he continues on the same pace as the last four games, then he’s on pace to finish with 296 total touches.
In 2024, Vols running back Dylan Sampson finished the regular season with 255 touches. He was a non-factor in Tennessee’s loss to Ohio State in the first round of the College Football Playoff because he was so banged up.
Bishop is a bigger and more physical running back than Sampson, so he should hold up a little better, but there’s still some concern about what kind of shape he’ll be in by the end of the season if he continues to carry a heavy load.
We’ve already seen Bishop have to leave a couple of games (before coming back into the game) due to getting banged up.
Vols head coach Josh Heupel was asked about Bishop’s workload earlier this week while speaking with reporters.
Heupel essentially said that Tennessee’s gotta do what it’s gotta do in order to win games right now.
“That’s (reaching the playoff) certainly the end objective in this game,” said Heupel. “But if you’re focused on that, you’ll have no chance to accomplish it. We’ve got to be in the present. DeSean is a massive part of our football team and has played at a really high level. He’s got a chance to heal up this week, too, and we’re going to need him at his best as we go down the stretch.”
I get it. The Vols have to win games before they can even think about the playoff, and Bishop is the engine that makes Tennessee’s offense go. The Vols can’t really give him a break if they’re in a close game.
It’s a tough spot for Heupel to be in, but Tennessee just has to hope for the best when it comes to Bishop’s health while spelling him when they can during the final four games of the season.
