OT Davis announces return in 2024
Dayne Davis is returning to Tennessee football for one more season.
The Vols offensive tackle announced his decision Thursday on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
“With another year left of eligibility, I’ll be staying in Knoxville to compete for a championship one last year with my brothers,” Davis wrote. “Home is where my heart is, Rocky Top Tennessee.”
The 6-foot-7, 325-pound Davis has played in 39 games in the past three seasons. He was put on scholarship in December 2020 after coming to UT as a walk-on.
Dayne Davis gives Tennessee football another returning offensive lineman
Davis joins Cooper Mays and John
Crawford as offensive linemen who have announced their return to UT for another season. Mays was UT’s starting center and Crawford was the left tackle last season. Offensive guard Javontez Spraggins is expected to return for the 2024 season, but he hasn’t announced his decision.
Mays, a Knoxville Catholic product, started the final eight games of the 2023 regular season after returning from a minor medical procedure in the preseason. He has played in 39 games, with 31 starts at center.
The 6-foot-5, 320-pound Campbell started in 10 games at left tackle in his first season at UT after transferring from Miami. Campbell has played in 43 career games, with 27 starts. At Miami, he was in 34 games, starting 18.
Spraggins suffered a season-ending injury against Georgia on Nov. 18. He has played 44 games, with 37 starts. Guard Jackson Lampley could also return.
Offensive tackle Gerald Mincey announced he would be returning then entered the portal and transferred to Kentucky. UK will be his third SEC school. He transferred to UT from Florida.
What Dayne Davis’ return means for Tennessee football
Tennessee lost a pair of potential offensive tackles in Mincey and Jeremiah Crawford, who was out of eligibility. It returns Campbell, who earned the starting left tackle spot. It also has Davis as a right tackle option going into next season. Davis has played multiple positions on the line, including center. UT could utilize him in a versatile role, if it chooses to do so.
UT’s offensive line did a stout job run blocking in 2023 and getting back many of the key cogs in that unit bodes well. The Vols presumably would still like to add offensive line depth in the transfer portal.