Tennessee football's Jabari Small opts out of Citrus Bowl
ORLANDO, Fla. – Tennessee running back Jabari Small has opted out of the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl, Knox News has learned.
Small did not participate in bowl practices, and he is not traveling with the team here on Wednesday. He has not announced his plans for 2024.
No. 21 Tennessee (8-4) plays No. 17 Iowa (10-3) in the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1 (1 p.m. ET, ABC) in Orlando, Florida.
The Vols will have a thin backfield rotation. Last week, running back Jaylen Wright announced that he opted out of the bowl and declared for the NFL Draft.
Small had one season of eligibility remaining because of a COVID-exempt year. He played 45 games at UT, including 24 starts.
Small rushed for 2,122 yards in his career, ranked 16th on UT's all-time list. His 24 rushing touchdowns rank 12th in program history.
This season, Small rushed for 475 yards while sharing carries with Wright, a 1,000-yard rusher, and budding sophomore Dylan Sampson.
WHICH VOLS ARE RETURNING IN 2024? Here's the COVID senior tracker
Who will carry the football in the Citrus Bowl?
The backfield rotation has shrunk heading into the Citrus Bowl.
Expect Sampson to start in the bowl, and he's the frontrunner to take that role next season. Sampson has 471 yards rushing, 175 yards receiving and eight TDs this season.
Freshman Cameron Seldon should step into the rotation. He has 51 yards on 12 carries this season. Freshman Khalifa Keith, who has seven carries for 14 yards, will be the third option.
Rushing yards could be tough to come by. Iowa touts the No. 4 scoring defense in the nation, allowing 13.2 points per game. And it's allowed only four rushing TDs this season, the second-fewest in FBS.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
Get the latest news and insight on SEC football by subscribing to the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee football's Jabari Small opts out of Citrus Bowl
