College Football5 hours ago1 minute read

Huge Blow for Tennessee as All-SEC Guard Wendell Moe Jr. Out for Season

Tennessee offensive guard Wendell Moe Jr. is expected to miss the rest of the season with a lower body injury suffered in the loss to Texas.

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Huge Blow for the Vols Front Line

No. 17 Tennessee has suffered a major setback. All SEC offensive guard Wendell Moe Jr. is expected to miss the rest of the season with a lower body injury.

Moe was injured during last weekend's 20-17 loss to No. 1 Texas. The fifth year senior from California went to the locker room in the first half and did not return.

Losing Moe is a massive hit to the Tennessee offense. He was regarded as one of the top returning offensive linemen in the SEC. He was on the Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy preseason watch lists. Last season, he played both left and right guard and was named first team All SEC.

Reshuffling the Line

With Moe out, Tennessee had to shuffle its line against the Longhorns. The coaching staff moved starting left guard Shamurad Umarov to right guard. Donovan Haslam came in to play left guard.

The Vols offense struggled to move the football during the close loss. Freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon threw for a season low 145 passing yards.

The ground game also took a massive hit. Tennessee entered the game averaging more than 250 rushing yards per game. Against Texas, they gained just 70 yards on 44 carries.

Bouncing Back

Tennessee currently sits at 3-1 on the year. They are looking to bounce back quickly as they return home to face Auburn this Saturday. Auburn also enters the matchup with a 3-1 record. The Vols will have to find a way to get their running game back on track without their star offensive lineman.

What it means for the next game

Auburn Tigers at Tennessee Volunteers (College Football, Sat, 03 Oct): Tennessee Volunteers win 72%, Auburn Tigers win 28%; projected score Tennessee Volunteers 31, Auburn Tigers 23. Our safest pick: Tennessee to win.

Tennessee Volunteers at Arkansas Razorbacks (College Football, Sat, 10 Oct): Arkansas Razorbacks win 32%, Tennessee Volunteers win 68%; projected score Arkansas Razorbacks 28, Tennessee Volunteers 34. Our safest pick: Over 51.5 points.