Josh Heupel praises Dylan Sampson, explains why he saw more 4th quarter snaps

Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Volunteers scored a huge win over Kentucky Saturday evening, 33-27.

The Vols leaned on the run as they have all season, and Jaylen Wright got things started in the best way possible. He finished with over 100 yards and 1 touchdown on the day, including the first score of the game.

But as the game went on Tennessee began to transition to more carries for Dylan Sampson over Wright and Jabari Small. And Sampson performed just as well, finishing with 75 rushing yards and a touchdown. He commanded one of the most important drives of the game following a badly-missed field goal from the Wildcats.

Following the game, Heupel met with reporters and praised Sampson’s “Unbelievable, dynamic and tough” game.

He also explained that Sampson had the hot hand while Wright started to deal with a slight injury late. His exact words were “Jaylen was nicked up a little bit.”

#Vols coach Josh Heupel on riding with Dylan Sampson and not Jaylen Wright down the stretch in tonight’s win at Kentucky: Samp was playing great, and Jaylen was nicked up a little bit.

— Wes Rucker (@wesrucker247) October 29, 2023

Heupel did not dive into specifics regarding Wright, though he seemed to allude that Wright could have returned if absolutely necessary. Heupel is famous for keeping injury details close to the chest, it’s worth noting.

Tennessee is now 6-2 on the year and has clinched bowl eligibility. The Vols look to add to their win total next weekend against UConn.

Ethan Stone

Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.