Josh Heupel updates the health of Tennessee running backs Cam Seldon, Peyton Lewis
Tennessee running backs Cam Seldon and Peyton Lewis are both doing “extremely well” coming off shoulder injuries, head coach Josh Heupel told reporters in Dallas on Tuesday during SEC Media Days.
Seldon, the 6-foot-2, 222-pound sophomore, suffered a shoulder injury during spring practice in March. Lewis, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound freshman and former four-star prospect, underwent shoulder surgery after enrolling at Tennessee in January.
“Both of those guys are doing extremely well,” Heupel said Tuesday morning, during his first press conference in Dallas. “Peyton is fully integrated into everything that we’re doing. Cam’s really close to that.
“(Seldon will) have a growth progression as we get into training camp, but excited to have both of those guys continue along that line and be ready for kickoff when we get to the season.”
Cam Seldon rushed 25 times for 106 yards as a freshman last season
Seldon rushed 13 times for 55 yards in Tennessee’s 35-0 win over Iowa in the Citrus Bowl on New Year’s Day, backing up sophomore starter Dylan Sampson after Jaylen Wright opted out to begin preparing for the NFL Draft.
Now Sampson is the starter entering his junior season, with Seldon, Lewis, sophomore Khalifa Keith and redshirt freshman DeSean Bishop providing the depth at the position.
Sampson last season rushed 106 times for 615 yards and seven touchdowns. Seldon appeared in all 13 games, rushing 25 times for 106 yards. Keith carried 11 times for 25 yards.
Lewis was a four-star prospect in the 2024 recruiting class out of Salem High School in Salem, Va. He was ranked No. 64 overall in the On3 Ratings, ranked as the No. 4 running back in the country and the No. 2 prospect in the state of Virginia.
Up Next: Tennessee vs. Chattanooga, August 31, 12:45 p.m. ET, SEC Network
Tennessee is two weeks away from the start of fall camp, which begins on July 31. The Vols start the new season against Chattanooga on August 31 at Neyland Stadium, a 12:45 p.m. Eastern Time kickoff on SEC Network.
“(The) offseason has been been really good,” Heupel said on Tuesday. “(It’s) the third quarter of our offseason. Summer has gone extremely well. This group is really mature, competitive, consistent in how they show up and compete every single day. Excited to get to, to training camp here in a couple weeks with this group.”
Heupel said he’s learned during the spring and summer how this Tennessee team is “extremely focused.”
“And that’s individually,” he said, “on where they want to get to it as a player, but collectively as a football team. They understand the importance of every single day you got to go win. Every rep, every set, every single day.
“Their feet are where they’re at, they’re in the moment and we got to continue to do that as we go into our next phase of preparation for the season when we get to training camp.”
