Darnell Wright accepts Senior Bowl invitation as he heads to the NFL
Tennessee offensive lineman Darnell Wright has accepted his invitation to the Senior Bowl according to a tweet from the Senior Bowl which declares his intentions for the 2023 football season. His status for Tennessee’s match up with Clemson in the Orange Bowl on December 30th in Miami remains unclear at this point. The senior had a COVID year of eligibility remaining after starting on the Volunteers offensive line each of the past four seasons.
The Huntington, W.V. native was a force for the nation’s No. 1 offense at 538 yards and 47.3 points per game. Tennessee also broke the program record with 568 points this season. Wright, who moved back over to right tackle this offseason after spending the 2021 campaign at left tackle, has not allowed a sack in 18-straight games.
Standing in at 6-foot-6 weighing 335 pounds, the offensive lineman has appeared in 46 games throughout his with 41 starts (33-straight). Wright finished the 2022 regular season not allowing a sack on 829 offensive snaps. In total, the tackle has logged 2,680 career snaps while making 26 starts at right tackle, 13 at left tackle and two at right guard.
Wright was named the SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week twice this season following Tennessee’s defeat of Alabama (October 15) and Kentucky (October 29). The senior was a semifinalist for the 2022 Rotary Lombardi Award. Wright was named to the Freshman All-SEC team at the conclusion of the 2019 season.
Top 10
- 1
Updated SEC title game scenarios
The path to the championship game is clear
- 2
SEC refs under fire
'Incorrect call' wipes Bama TD away
- 3
'Fire Kelly' chants at LSU
Death Valley disapproval of Brian Kelly
- 4New
Chipper Jones
Braves legend fiercely defends SEC
- 5
Drinkwitz warns MSU
Mizzou coach sounded off
Prior to arrive on campus in 2019, Wright was a consensus five-star recruit out of Huntington High School in West Virginia. He played in the 2019 Under Armour All-American Game and was a preseason 2018 MaxPreps All-American. Wright was a three-time Class AA All-State selection by the West Virginia Sports Writer’s Association.
Cade Mays is the latest Vol offensive lineman to be drafted as he was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the sixth round earlier this spring. Two years ago, Trey Smith was taken by the Chiefs in the sixth round.
Tennessee has sported a combined 379 all-time draft picks, including the AFL Draft which merged in 1967. Josh Heupel produced seven draft picks while head coach at UCF and churned out another five following his first season in Knoxville. He was also instrumental in the development of former second-round quarterback Drew Lock while serving as the offensive coordinator at Missouri.
