Tennessee · SECTennessee loses Wendell Moe Jr. for season
The Volunteers ruled out seven players, including starting guard Wendell Moe Jr., while Auburn listed two absences for the Oct. 3 SEC game.
OCT 1, 2026
Tennessee players listed as out
Auburn players listed as out
Starts by Wendell Moe Jr. before his season ended
01 · The NewsMoe Out, Line Tested
Tennessee will take a seven-player injury list into Saturday, Oct. 3, against Auburn, including the season-ending loss of four-game starter Wendell Moe Jr.; Auburn has two players ruled out for the 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff in Knoxville.
Moe started Tennessee’s first four games, lining up at left guard in three of them. He spent four snaps at right guard in the Volunteers’ 20-17 loss to Texas on Sept. 26 before suffering a lower-body injury.
Tennessee also ruled out tight end Ethan Davis, wide receiver Joakim Dodson, linebacker Jaedon Harmon, defensive backs Endrees Farooq and Dylan Lewis, and defensive lineman Keldric Golston III. Running back Javin Gordon is doubtful, while offensive lineman Shamurad Umarov carries a questionable designation and defensive lineman Nathan Robinson is listed as probable.
Those designations could further change Tennessee’s offensive personnel for Auburn. The SEC’s final availability report will be issued 90 minutes before kickoff, following daily updates to the initial report.
Auburn’s absences are Buster, an offensive lineman, and Hunter Herring, a tight end. Buster has missed every game after a preseason-camp injury. Herring has played 17 snaps, all against Southern Miss on Sept. 12. Auburn’s raw count is smaller, but Tennessee’s established loss is more consequential: Moe started four games before his season ended.
Tennessee must settle its interior-line answer without Moe before the SEC game in Knoxville.
02 · The StakesWhy It Matters
That absence leaves Tennessee trying to steady its interior offensive line as it rebounds from the Texas loss and protects its place in the SEC race. Both teams are 3-1, but Auburn brings the healthier roster into a game that could further test Tennessee’s line continuity.
03 · The Detail Beneath the HeadlineWhat Most People Are Missing
Matching 3-1 records obscure how different the starting points are. Tennessee went 8-5 and 4-4 in the SEC in 2025; Auburn went 5-7 and 1-7. The Oct. 3 game offers Auburn a chance to turn a healthier roster into evidence that its conference floor has moved, while Tennessee is trying to avoid consecutive losses before an Oct. 10 trip to Arkansas and an Oct. 17 visit from Alabama. Moe’s season-ending absence reaches three October SEC games after Auburn, with Tennessee missing a guard who made four starts to open 2026.
04 · The Open QuestionsQuestions to Be Answered
Who replaces Moe at guard against Auburn?
Tennessee has not named Moe’s replacement, and Umarov’s questionable designation leaves the available line unsettled for Oct. 3. The starter and rotation will define the post-Moe line before the Oct. 10 trip to Arkansas and Oct. 17 visit from Alabama. The final report 90 minutes before kickoff will first establish whether Umarov is an option.
05 · The Watch ListWhat We're Watching
Who fills Moe’s interior-line spot?
Tennessee must settle its interior-line answer without Moe before the SEC game in Knoxville.
Do the other Tennessee designations change?
The SEC’s final availability report will be issued 90 minutes before kickoff, following daily updates to the initial report.