When it comes to recognizable football players who have worn jersey No. 10 through the years, former NFL quarterbacks Fran Tarkenton and Eli Manning quickly come to mind.
It’s a bit different with the 2023 University of Tennessee roster, as No. 10 is possessed by 5-foot-10, 165-pound receiver Squirrel White and by 6-2, 340-pound nose tackle Elijah Simmons. A fifth-year senior, Simmons had worn No. 51 before this month.
“I felt like it was a new season and a new opportunity to change how I play,” Simmons said Tuesday in a news conference. “I did better this spring, so I felt like a new number. It’s a new me. I wanted a single-digit number, but they were all taken, so I’m rocking No. 10.”
The Volunteers held their sixth preseason workout Tuesday and will practice again Wednesday before scrimmaging Thursday.
Simmons has played in 33 career games with six starts during his time in Knoxville. None of those starts occurred last season, when he competed in all 13 contests and tallied eight tackles and one tackle for loss.