On multiple occasions when Cedric Tillman hit pay dirt in 2021, he took a page out of the meme that was made popular from the documentary “The Last Dance.” Much like the silver-haired security guard who mocks Michael Jordan with a shrug celebration after beating him in a game of quarters, Tillman often found himself standing in the end zone with nothing else to do but shrug.

Jordan’s famous shrug came when he made 6 3-pointers in the first half of a game in the 1992 NBA Finals. It was as if to say “I can’t explain why I’m this good.”

Spend enough time listening to Tennessee players and coaches talk about Tillman and you’ll see why he’s this good.

Well, this sort of sums it up:

In case you need a recap for “what happened with him,” here’s a rundown of what Tillman did in 2021. He had the first 1,000-yard season by a Tennessee receiver since 2012. He had 16 grabs of 25 yards. He was 1 touchdown shy of tying the program record for receiving scores in a season.

Not bad for a guy who entered 2021 with 2 career starts and 8 career catches.

Tillman’s pre-2021 numbers screamed “garbage time reserve.” In 2022, his numbers should scream “video game stuff.”

Excluding quarterbacks, nobody in the SEC is a better bet to go off than Tillman.

That includes tailbacks like Chris Rodriguez and Tank Bigsby, both of whom figure to start as preseason All-SEC backs but both have the minor unknown of working with new offensive coordinators.

That includes the slew of promising Power 5 transfer tailbacks, all of whom are trying to show they can compete against SEC competition.

That even includes potential preseason All-American receiver Kayshon Boutte, who is coming off 2 ankle surgeries in the last 5.5 months and will have a new starting quarterback to work with (he’s also still “reengaging” with LSU and its new coaching staff).

Tillman? He’s running it back in the same high-powered offense with Hendon Hooker. You know, the guy who took over as the starter and casually finished with the No. 3 quarterback rating in FBS in Year 1 of Josh Heupel’s offense. It’s Hooker who will now get the entire offseason with the first-teamers to develop that connection with Tillman. That’s unique in the SEC this year. That duo could be the most potent in the conference.

Among the top 5 receivers in the SEC in 2021, Tillman is the only one who returns. Among the top 10 receivers in the SEC in 2021, Tillman and Brock Bowers are the lone returners who will get to work with the same starting quarterback. Any preseason All-SEC team without Tillman is incomplete.

It’s sort of wild to think that Tillman put up the numbers he did for a top-10 offense, and he didn’t get an All-SEC nod at season’s end. Then again, Jameson Williams, Treylon Burks, Wan’Dale Robinson and John Metchie were all plenty worthy of that honor.

Now, though, all of them are gone. Somewhat surprisingly, Tillman didn’t join that group and leave for the NFL. He’s entering Year 5 at Tennessee hoping to improve as a route-runner. Lord knows he doesn’t need any work high-pointing the football or making highlight-reel grabs:

How did that guy not make an impression until 2021, you ask?

Let’s give credit where credit is due. It was Jeremy Pruitt’s staff who made the smart decision to offer the lightly recruited Tillman a scholarship the week of the February signing day back in 2018. It was Heupel’s staff (former Tennessee receivers coach Kodi Burns deserves a lot of praise) and scheme that allowed a motivated Tillman to truly thrive. Tillman was so unfamiliar with catching deep throws that he admittedly would stop running and get overthrown by Joe Milton in fall camp.

In his defense, Tillman caught passes from a better quarterback in high school (Dorian Thompson-Robinson) than he did in his first 3 years at Tennessee. Hooker was certainly a cut above the likes of Jarrett Guarantano, Brian Maurer, JT Shrout and Harrison Bailey. And obviously, Hooker got a chance to throw in the up-tempo, high-octane Heupel offense.

But if there’s any notion that last year’s breakout season was just the byproduct of scheme, explain this. Tillman dropped 200 receiving yards against Georgia’s generational defense, and he put up 152 a few weeks earlier against Alabama in Tuscaloosa. That was part of a 7-game stretch to close the season wherein Tillman averaged 6.9 catches, 124 yards and 1.4 touchdowns. He also broke the program record for consecutive games with a touchdown pass (7), which previously dated back to 1995.

If Tillman matches that pace in 2022, he’ll shatter the Tennessee records for receptions (currently 76), receiving yards (currently 1,298) and touchdown catches (currently 13). Of course, maintaining that pace for an entire year will be extremely challenging now that Tillman is at the top of every scouting report, especially with JaVonta Payton and Velus Jones Jr. off to the NFL. And there’s a chance that there will be some more prepared SEC defensive coordinators against Heupel’s offense in Year 2.

Even if that happens, though, we’re still talking about a play-caller who dialed up a top-10 offense in each of the last 4 years. The up-tempo scheme and the downfield shots should present Tillman with plenty more of those opportunities. What was partially responsible for Tillman putting up 150 yards and 3 scores in the Music City Bowl? Probably the fact that he played 109 (!) snaps.

Heupel certainly isn’t expecting Tillman’s opportunities to decrease. When Tillman announced he was returning to Tennessee for a Year 5, Heupel said “I think he’s got a much higher ceiling than even how he’s played at the end of this year.” Sheesh.

It’s been a decade since Tennessee had an All-SEC receiver at season’s end. It’s been 16 years since Robert Meachem set the Tennessee receiving yards record. It’s been 25 years since Marcus Nash set the Tennessee receiving touchdowns record.

It’s not far-fetched to think that all of those feats are within reach for Tillman in 2022. And if that does happen?

Well, he’ll probably just shrug it off.