Tennessee Volunteers Peyton Lewis Early Success Shows A Promising Future

Peyton Lewis will be the backup back for the Georgia game with DeSean Bishop out for the second game in a row.

Caleb Sisk | 2 Hours Ago

Tennessee running back Peyton Lewis (27) runs with the ball during a college football game between Tennessee and Mississippi State at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. / Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Tennessee Volunteers

Peyton Lewis will be the backup back for the Georgia game with DeSean Bishop out for the second game in a row.

Thanks to Dylan Sampson, Tennessee football has had the best rushing attack in the SEC. What doesn’t get mentioned enough is the Vols' success behind Sampson with DeSean Bishop. However, Bishop went down with an injury against the Kentucky Wildcats.

Bishop would miss the Mississippi State game and will miss the Georgia game on Saturday. Once again for the Vols, they will have to dig deeper and find their No. 2 back which will be Peyton Lewis who played the role last weekend.

Lewis has slowly started becoming a star in this Tennessee offense. The Virginia track star had 14 carries last weekend against the Bulldogs and picked up his first touchdown against Kentucky two weekends ago. Lewis had his biggest game against Kent State where he averaged 9.9 yards per carry with 10 carries for 99 yards. He has 186 yards and a touchdown this season for the Vols averaging nearly 5 yards per carry. The true freshman hasn’t been a drop-off from Bishop at all.

This running back group has changed over time with Cameron Seldon expected to be the backup to Sampson. The Vols found quick success in Bishop and Lewis who take a large majority of the snaps at backup.

With Sampson in the middle of a breakout season, the Vols running back is undetermined publicly if he will return or enter the NFL Draft. Early success from Lewis shows the Vols will likely be in great shape in years to come.