Cedric Tillman not dressed for No. 5 Tennessee against Missouri

No. 5 Tennessee won’t have redshirt senior wide receiver Cedric Tillman available for Saturday’s game against Missouri at Neyland Stadium.

Tillman went through pregame warmups was dressed while being honored on Senior Day, but was in street clothes on the Tennessee sideline during the first quarter.

A Tennessee spokesperson said the Vols “just decided not to play” Tillman, who missed three games earlier this season due to a high-ankle sprain. On The Vol Network radio broadcast, sideline reporter and former Tennessee receiver Jayson Swain reported that the Vols opted not to play Tillman due to the wet field conditions.

Jabari Small ran for a 10-yard touchdown to cap the Vols’ first possession of the day, a seven-play, 91-yard scoring drive. Tennessee’s defense forced three-and-outs on Missouri’s first two possessions, sandwiched around the Small touchdown.

Hendon Hooker escaped a sack to run for 17 yards on the first drive, setting Tennessee up on the Missouri 15-yard line. He connected with Jacob Warren for 22 yards on the first play of the drive and extended it on third-and-10 when he hit Bru McCoy on a 38-yard completion.

Tillman had a breakout redshirt junior season in 2021, catching 64 passes fro 1,081 yards and 12 touchdowns. He’s played in just five games this season, after suffering the ankle sprain in the win over Akron on September 17 at Neyland Stadium. He has 28 catches for 336 yards and one touchdown this season.

The Vols announced before the game that defensive back Kamal Hadden (hamstring) and freshman quarterback Tayven Jackson (shoulder) would not be available for the game.

Hadden has 28 tackles — 15 solo, 13 assists — in six games this season. He has 2.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions, a forced fumble and two passes broken up.

He one assisted tackle in the loss at Georgia last week and a season-high eight tackles at LSU on October 8.

Tennessee honors seniors on Senior Day against Missouri

The Vols honored 21 seniors before Saturday’s Noon Eastern Time kickoff.

The players that ran through the ’T’ for the final time include quarterback Hendon Hooker, wide receiver Cedric Tillman, defensive end Byron Young, defensive back Trevon Flowers, punter Paxton Brooks, offensive tackle Darnell Wright, linebacker Jeremy Banks, linebacker Solon Page III, offensive lineman Jerome Carvin, defensive end LaTrell Bumphus, tight end Princeton Fant, wide receiver Michael Bittner, defensive lineman Maurese Smith, linebacker Nick Humphrey, tight end Jacob Warren, linebacker West Shuler, wide receiver Grant Frerking, defensive back Cheyenned Labruzza, kicker Toby Wilson and defensive back Romello Edwards.

Tennessee, playing in front of a sixth consecutive sold-out crowd at Neyland Stadium, is looking to finish a perfect 7-0 in Knoxville. The Vols haven’t finished undefeated at home since 2007.

Earlier this week Tennessee thanked the fans in a social media video voiced by Carvin.

“It will be great to recognize this group of guys that have poured so much into this program,” Heupel said during his weekly press conference on Monday. “Stuck it out here in tough times and have helped this program continue to rise here over the last two years, since myself and my staff got here. 

“Appreciative of what those guys have done and what they’ve meant to this football program and the Power T during their playing career. Obviously in the future, too.”