The Tennessee Volunteers are progressing throughout camp, as they are now under four weeks away from their first contest of the 2026 season. While there has been plenty to be excited about, there have also been some things that have affected the team in a bad way. This includes a recent development.
According to Austin Price from VolQuest, Jaedon Harmon suffered an injury, and he is expected to be sidelined for the full 2026 season. It seems that the injury is an ACL tear, which means the recovery could take as long as a year, although the staff seems to get a good grasp on things to speed the process up. However, an injury like this can't be taken lightly, and the season seems impossible for his return.
Harmon was entering just his sophomore year; however, he will now be able to play three seasons with the Vols after the NCAA made some major rule changes, allowing college players to play five seasons rather than four. This eliminated traditional redshirting, which means that by the time Harmon returns, he will be a junior rather than a redshirt-sophomore.
Aug 30, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Syracuse Orange tight end David Clement (0) is tackled by Tennessee Volunteers linebacker Jaedon Harmon (12) and defensive lineman Nathan Robinson (94) in the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Tennessee linebacker room is extremely deep; however, the first two weeks will be a bit tough for the Vols. This is due to the fact that Harmon is now out for the season, and Arion Carter received a questionable suspension by the NCAA . This will leave the Vols with limited linebackers to be able to rotate in during the first two weeks. When Carter returns, the Vols will be able to focus on what they can fully offer for the remainder of the season.
Until then, two freshmen could find themselves in contributing roles. Those two are Brayden Rouse and TJ White, both of whom were four-star additions and top-five linebackers in the country during the class of 2026. Both were expected to be late rotational pieces, but they will now have the chance to earn some more reps following this injury.
Harmon was viewed as the third group of linebackers, which means the injury affects the depth of the linebacker room rather than the starting group, but this is still a major loss, considering he is a fast-moving and violent player. The Tennessee Vols will absolutely miss Harmon this season, whether that be later in the games, throughout rotational roles, or on the special teams side of things. This is especially the case considering he was having a great offseason.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/tennessee as Tennessee Football EDGE Jaedon Harmon Suffers Season Ending Injury .
