Tennessee Vols set to get a key reinforcement back for their matchup against NC State

It sounds as though the Tennessee Vols will be all hands on deck for their biggest non-conference game of the season on Saturday, as UT faces the NC State Wolfpack on Saturday night at 7:30 pm ET from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC.

The game will constitute a major step forward in competition from Week 1, when the Vols demolished the Chattanooga Mocs 69-3 on Saturday afternoon in Neyland Stadium.  Fortunately, the Vols will have a significant part of its defense back and ready for the contest.

Per Josh Heupel on Monday during his press conference, Tennessee will have the services of cornerback Rickey Gibson III on Saturday against the Wolfpack.

"We held a couple of guys on game day," Heupel said in response to a question about Gibson not playing against Chattanooga. "You might have seen them warm up.  At the end of the day, he'll be ready to roll this week. Just felt like, for our football team and the longevity, all of it, there were a couple of guys that we held out that could have played in that one, but we'll hold them for this week."

Gibson, a sophomore from Trussville, Alabama, played in 13 games in 2023, largely on special teams.  He did draw the start against Iowa in the Citrus Bowl and was part of a defense that shut out the Hawkeyes in UT's 35-0 win.

Gibson is listed as a co-starter on this week's depth chart with Jalen McMurray at one of the cornerback spots.  McMurray logged a team-high 32 snaps last Saturday.

Now, Heupel and defensive coordinator Tim Banks will have both talented defenders at their disposal on one side of the field as the Vols look to slow down talented NC State QB Grayson McCall and the Wolfpack offense on Saturday night.

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