Josh Heupel addresses lack of involvement for Dylan Sampson in loss vs. Ohio State

Dylan Sampson took two carries for six yards after he was injured early on during Tennessee‘s College Football Playoff loss to Ohio State on Saturday.

The injury isn’t new, however, according to Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel.

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“[At the] end of the Vandy game, got dinged up, and it was soft tissue and had been out the first couple weeks and got back with us,” Heupel revealed postgame. “Started building him through the week. Felt like he was in a good spot. Anticipated him not having the same type of load that he normally would have.

“Just early in the game kind of retweaked it and wasn’t available there for a while.”

Tennessee ultimately lost the matchup 42-17 and had to rely on true freshman Peyton Lewis and quarterback Nico Iamaleava to provide a spark in the rushing game. Without Sampson’s services, the Tennessee offense finished with 152 rushing yards.

Sampson finishes his junior season with 258 carries for 1,491 yards and 22 touchdowns. His historic efforts in Knoxville earned him 2024 SEC Offensive Player of the Year honors for his services.

Heupel finished by sending a message to Sampson and the veterans on the team.

“The guys that have been a part of building this program — I’m talking about inside the locker room, the seniors that you’re losing — what they’ve meant to this program,” Heupel said of his message. “But I started it out by recognizing how disappointing this was. You’d better let that soak in, and it’s got to propel you for whatever is next.”

What’s next for Sampson is up to him. He can enter the 2025 NFL Draft as one of the top running backs in the cycle, or return to Tennessee for a fourth season and potentially contend for a Heisman Trophy and help lead his team back to the playoffs. What he plans to do remains to be seen.