In 2024, Dylan Sampson stamped his legacy as a Tennessee Volunteers legend with a historic rushing campaign. The Vols running back broke a litany of Tennessee school records, including the most rushing yards (1,491 yards) and touchdowns in a season (22 tds), and his stellar performance on the field earned him 2024 SEC Offensive Player of the Year.
Following in the footsteps of an all-time great like Dylan Sampson can seem insurmountable for most schools. Imagine being the quarterback who replaced Tim Tebow or the running back who has to follow Ashton Jeanty. This reality is what the Tennessee Volunteers’ running backs face after Sampson declared for the 2025 NFL Draft.
Some programs sink after losing such talent, and others swim. Luckily for Tennessee, they have some valuable options on its roster, and the Volunteers have already proven they can regroup at the running back position after losing talented players like Jabari Small and Jaylen Wright in the years prior.
Here are three of Tennessee’s leading candidates to fill the hole left by Sampson’s departure:
Sampson’s Replacements
Peyton Lewis
After starting the 2024 season as the third option in Tennessee’s running back room, Peyton Lewis saw more action after injuries to Dylan Sampson and DeSean Bishop. Lewis’s most notable performance was in the College Football Playoffs against the eventual National Champions, the Ohio State Buckeyes, where he rushed for 77 yards on only 10 carries. During his time on the field in 2024, Lewis finished the season with 339 rushing yards and three touchdowns, and he even returned kicks. However, with Sampson’s absence, expect Lewis to spend less time as a kick returner in 2025.
Lewis’s big 6-foot-1, 212-pound frame, and blazing speed make him a valuable asset to the Volunteers for the upcoming season. Speaking of speed, Lewis was also a five-time state champion in high school track & field and was rated the No. 2 football player from Virginia by On3 in the class of 2024. After showing improvement each week last season, Lewis will be one of the leading running backs for the Volunteers in 2025 and will likely split many carries with the next running back mentioned in this article.
DeSean Bishop
Redshirt sophomore DeSean Bishop might be the most intriguing player to fill the void after the loss of Dylan Sampson. Bishop began his 2024 season sharing carries with Sampson until an undisclosed lower-body injury against the Kentucky Wildcats sidelined Bishop for the next three games.
Before the injury, Bishop showed a lot of potential rushing for a career-high 120 rushing yards and two touchdowns in a victory against the Kent State Golden Flashes. Bishop also rushed for 61 yards against the Vanderbilt Commodores after Sampson left the game with an injury. Although he didn’t receive many carries, it is also fair to mention that Bishop averaged 7.2 yards per carry in Tennessee’s victory against the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Former Vols wide receiver Bru McCoy also highly praised Bishop at the NFL scouting combine when asked about which players Vols fans should keep an eye on in 2025. In his response, McCoy mentioned Bishop as one of those players and continued, saying:
“He’s a stud, local guy, extremely hard worker. I spent a lot of time in the gym with him, and he’s got a ton of talent.”
It is also worth noting that Bishop was a back-to-back Tennessee Titans 5A Mr. Football award winner in high school. During that time, Bishop posted 8,347 rushing yards and 102 rushing touchdowns.
As long as Bishop remains healthy in 2025, don’t be surprised if he is Tennessee’s starting running back by the Fall.
Star Thomas
Star Thomas might sound unfamiliar to some Vols fans, considering he wasn’t on the roster last season; however, the Duke Blue Devils transfer will add much-needed experience to a young running back group.
Thomas started his collegiate career at Coffeyville Community College, eventually transferring to the New Mexico State Aggies in 2022. During his two years at New Mexico State, Thomas rushed for 1,173 yards and nine rushing touchdowns. He also contributed to the Aggies’ passing game, recording 351 receiving yards and five touchdowns over his career.
In 2024, after two seasons with New Mexico State, Thomas transferred to Duke, where he appeared in 12 games, recording 1,024 all-purpose yards, including seven rushing touchdowns. Thomas also had arguably his best performance against the North Carolina Tar Heels, rushing for 166 yards and a touchdown.
Considering that Peyton Lewis and DeSean Bishop have only one year of playing experience, Thomas likely will play a pivotal role in Tennessee’s rushing attack in 2025.
