With under 24 hours until Tennessee football meets ETSU on the gridiron, the Vols have released their list of team captains for the home opener in Knoxville. UT does captains on a game-by-game basis, but often a lot of the picks repeat throughout the season.
This time, it’s a fresh slate with no repeats from the previous game. For the game against ETSU, it’ll be defensive end Dominic Bailey, running back DeSean Bishop, linebacker Edwin Spillman and cornerback William Wright. Each of these four players are returners from a year ago, and Bailey and Bishop both started in the win over Syracuse last week.
Bailey is a sixth-year senior who has been with Tennessee since the 2020 season. He has 43 games with 13 starts under his belt. In this time, he has accumulated 52 total tackles, five TFLs, 2.5 sacks, five QB hurries, three fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. In the opener against Syracuse, he managed two tackles at both defensive end and defensive tackle.
Bishop is a Knoxville native out of local Karns High School. He is a redshirt sophomore who was a depth piece in the backfield a year ago and earned his first collegiate start against the Orange. In the season opener, he produced 82 rushing yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. He also caught two passes for a total of 44 yards.
More From RTI: Tennessee Football Reportedly had Highest Recruiting Budget in the Country in 2024
Spillman, a former in-state recruit, is a redshirt freshman who threatened to be one of the first backers off the bench a year ago, but was hindered by injury. Now, he is the unquestioned third linebacker behind just Arion Carter and Jeremiah Telander. In the opener, he produced six tackles and a sack.
Wright is also a sixth-year senior who has been with the program since 2020. He has versatility in the secondary, but played a handful of snaps specifically at cornerback in the opener. The Nashville native has 14 tackles to his name in his career.
Game 1 Tennessee Captains (vs. Syracuse [Atlanta])
- LS Bennett Brady
- LB Arion Carter
- TE Miles Kitselman
- S Andre Turrentine
Game 2 Tennessee Captains (vs. ETSU)
- DE Dominic Bailey
- RB DeSean Bishop
- LB Edwin Spillman
- CB William Wright
