Tennessee Football: What does Jauan Jennings’ injury mean for Vols?

Tennessee football lost a major offensive contributor on Monday night in Jauan Jennings. What does that mean for the Vols?

After a wild ending to its opener against Georgia Tech, Tennessee received some bad news. Starting receiver Jauan Jennings would likely miss the rest of the regular season with a dislocated wrist.

Jennings went into the locker room in the first half and didn’t return, but it was unclear just how extensive the injury was.

He finished with three catches for 17 yards and was expected to lead the Volunteers’ young corps of wide outs. He was the team’s projected No. 1 target for 2017. Time for Tennessee to adjust on the fly.

Unfortunately, injuries like these are unavoidable and at least the Volunteers will have all season to find a replacement. Who will it be, though?

An early candidate is sophomore Marquez Callaway. He caught four passes for 115 yards and two touchdowns from Quinten Dormady on Monday. The two developed a solid connection throughout the game and Callaway quadrupled his catches from his freshman year in one game.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound wide out was the only Tennessee receiver to reach the end zone on Monday against the Yellow Jackets and it’s looking more and more likely that Butch Jones will rely on him as the replacement. Callaway surely has No. 1 receiver potential, but wasn’t expecting to be thrust into that role this early in the year.

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There’s a small chance Jennings comes back by the end of the regular season or the bowl game, but Callaway may have that No. 1 role on lock either way. It’s time for Tennessee to move forward without its star wide out and develop a new top dog.