Tennessee seniors Josh Dobbs, Cameron Sutton and Jalen Reeves-Maybin joined coach Butch Jones in Hoover, Alabama, for SEC Media Days this week.

The trio recalled their early years with the Volunteers and talked about what they want to accomplish in 2016:

Asked Tuesday at SEC media days if the ascent had been rewarding, Sutton said, “It has. That class and the guys that came in with me have seen the good, the bad and the ugly. Adversity hit us hard our first year, going 5-7 and watching all the bowl games and really being down.

“Now having back-to-back bowl wins, we’re not satisfied with that. We obviously want to accomplish bigger things than just winning bowl games. It’s definitely been a great journey we’ve been on.”

The Volunteers have lofty expectations this season. Many media members and coaches have picked Tennessee to win the SEC East and compete for a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Dobbs said he and his senior teammates have come a long way from where they were after a 5-7 freshman season:

“Me and Cam were roommates freshman year, and I remember times we’d just be sitting there talking about the season or something,” Dobbs said. “We were talking about the goals that we wanted to accomplish while we were here at Tennessee. The fact that every single goal that we want to accomplish is right in front of us is great.

“We talked about our class bringing Tennessee back to its spot where it should be. Obviously Tennessee has a great program of tradition, so that was our mindset when we stepped on campus. We’ve done that, and now we have to take care of business.”

Dobbs, Sutton and Reeves-Maybin will need to be great for Tennessee to live up to expectations. The Volunteers’ first game of the season is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 1, against Appalachian State at Neyland Stadium.