There will be opportunities aplenty in Nashville.
Tennessee football will close its 2025 campaign in the Music City Bowl against the Illinois Fighting Illini, and many players, due to opt-outs or injuries, will have one last opportunity to prove their capabilities before the offseason.
With a strong high school recruiting class incoming and the opening of the transfer portal on Jan. 2, there will be plenty of new faces that will come to Knoxville with the hopes of competing and winning a place in the starting lineup or, at the very least, earning meaningful snaps. This leaves the bowl game as the last opportunity for returning players to prove themselves to Josh Heupel and the coaching staff, as they seek to raise the bar and get back into playoff contention.
In the days leading up to the finale, Heupel has pointed out the importance of the final month of the season. He uses Jalin Hyatt as a bulletin board example, going from a depth piece to Biletnikoff award winner in an offseason because of the December he put together. That’ll be uber-important for the youth participating Tuesday.
“Hopefully, after the ball game, I’m able to talk about somebody,” Heupel said. “But I do think there’s been a group of guys, young guys that I’ve talked to just during the prep that I’ve really liked their focus, their attention to detail and how they’ve approached it.”
Here are five Vols who stand to gain the most from the Music City Bowl.
Tight end Ethan Davis
Davis came on strong to end the season following the injury to senior starter Miles Kitselman. Across his last two games of the season, the sophomore caught 12 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown.
The young tight end averaged 12.2 yards per reception, better than Kitselman’s 10.0 average, and Davis’s output at the end of the season left him as the leader in receiving yards for the tight end room despite spending much of it as a backup.
While he does figure to play a prominent role in next year’s offense, this is one last opportunity to prove his receiving prowess and earn trust in what is expected to be a crowded group of pass catchers next season.
Wide receiver Radarious Jackson
Speaking of a crowded receiving core, Jackson has quite the opportunity in front of him with Chris Brazzell II opting out of the bowl game.
However, there is much to lose for him, too.
With Braylon Staley and Mike Matthews looking to have starting spots locked up for next year, coupled with prized five-star receiver Tristen Keys signing with Tennessee, Jackson’s shot could be a now-or-never sort of deal.
The true freshman tallied seven receptions for 72 yards and boasted much talent as a four-star recruit coming out of high school. A big performance in the Music City Bowl could earn him more trust entering the offseason, which could be parlayed into more opportunities next fall.
Linebacker Jadon Perlotte
With Arion Carter declaring for the NFL Draft and opting out of the bowl game, Perlotte has quite an opportunity in front of him.
The true freshman had limited playing time this year, but he flashed the great athleticism and potential that earned him a four-star recruiting ranking coming out of Buford, Georgia. Perlotte totaled 13 tackles, seven of them being solo tackles, and he recovered two fumbles for the Vol defense this season.
At 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, the young linebacker has the size and build to be a core piece of the Tennessee defense entering 2026.
Defensive back Ty Redmond
Redmond was thrust into the fire early in the season after injuries to starting cornerbacks Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson III.
Despite his struggles early in the season, the defensive coaching staff stuck with him, and he seemed to turn a corner late in the season, with two of his three interceptions on the year coming in the last three games of the season.
The young corner figures to play a part next season as things stand, given the thin status of the cornerback room. However, he could give himself a leg up on any new or returning faces with a strong defensive performance against Illinois.
Defensive lineman Jordan Ross
A big opportunity awaits Ross should he seize it with a big bowl game performance. The former five-star prospect was a depth piece of a Vols defense that was fifth in the SEC with 36 sacks, but with many linemen set to graduate, his role figures to grow.
Given the production that will be lost, it would make sense for Tennessee to attack the defensive line in the transfer portal and restock a cupboard that could look quite barren entering the spring. For Ross, this is his chance to prove that he can be a key component of the defensive front next fall.
The sophomore recorded 1.5 sacks and forced one fumble this season, but his potential could very well be unlocked under incoming defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.
