Tennessee football wide receiver Joakim Dodson suffered a season-ending leg injury in the No. 18 Vols' season opener against Furman, coach Josh Heupel announced on Sept. 7.
Dodson, a sophomore, is one of UT's primary kick returners and Braylon Staley's backup at slot receiver. His injury likely moves freshman Tyreek King, a former Knox Catholic standout, into the backup slot position.
Dodson was injured on a kickoff return in the fourth quarter of Tennessee's 56-9 win over the Paladins. He stayed down for a few minutes before being helped off the field by UT trainers. He was later seen on crutches.
As a freshman in 2025, Dodson appeared in five games, mostly contributing on special teams with just two receptions. He returned a kickoff 94 yards
for a touchdown against Illinois in the Music City Bowl, becoming just the third Tennessee player in history to return a kickoff for a touchdown in a bowl game, joining Pete Panuska (1984 Sun Bowl) and Willie Gault (1981 Garden State Bowl).
Dodson was a three-star recruit in the high school class of 2025 coming out of Baylor School in Chattanooga, where he transferred after three years at Collierville High School near his hometown of Memphis. The 247Sports Composite ranked him as the No. 91 receiver in his class and No. 21 prospect from Tennessee.
Tennessee (1-0) plays Georgia Tech (0-1) this weekend in Atlanta on Sept. 12 (7 p.m., ESPN).
Emmett Siegel covers Tennessee baseball for Knox News. Email: emmett.siegel@knoxnews.com; X: @EmmettSiegel_
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Joakim Dodson injury update, Tennessee football wide receiver out for 2026 season
