Tennessee will kick off its 2024 football season in 40 days.

The Vols will open its upcoming campaign on Aug. 31 against Chattanooga at Neyland Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 12:45 p.m. EDT and SEC Network will televise the contest.

2024 will be the fourth season for Tennessee under head coach Josh Heupel. In his first three seasons, Heupel is 27-12 and guided the Vols to three bowl games.

The Vols finished 9-4 (4-4 SEC) last season.

With 40 days remaining until the start of the 2024 football season, Vols Wire looks back at Tennessee student-athletes who wore No. 40.

All time players to wear No. 40 at Tennessee:

Ralph Eldred (1937-38)

Webster Hubbell (1939-41)

Don Shipley (1945)

Dillard Whittier (1946)

Bobby Brengle (1952-54)

Al Carter (1955-57)

Bobby Finley (1958-59)

Jake Pope (1960)

Hal Wantland (1963)

Mike Mondelli (1965-67)

Mike Jones (1968-69)

Kevin Milam (1971)

Ernie Ward (1973-75)

Bobby Emmons (1976-78)

Lyon Fleming (1979)

Bill Bates (1980-82)

Lavosier Fisher (1983-85)

Shazzon Bradley (1988-1991)

Chris Harris (1993)

Billy Ratliff (1996-99)

Dustin Colquitt (2001)

Nick Reviez (2007)

Jake Story (2009)

Chris Cates (2010-11)

Austin Johnson (2008-11)

Raiques Crump (2012-13)

Alex Ellis (2012-13)

Dimarya Mixon (2014-16)

Nick Humphrey (2017)

J.J. Peterson (2018)

Fred Orr (2019-20)

Donovan Slates (2021)

Chase McGrath (2021-22)

Kalib Perry (2022-23)

*Source: 2023 Tennessee Football Media Guide

Anytime you can pull a high school prospect out of an SEC state when that kid has an offer from the in-state school, it’s an impressive feat.

That’s exactly what Michigan football did early this year with three-star Alcoa (Tenn.) tight end Eli Owens, who committed to the Wolverines way back on Jan. 4 among a ‘Top Nine’ which also included Tennessee, Alabama, Ohio State, North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, Cincinnati and South Florida. Owens was the third high school prospect to commit to Michigan in the 2025 recruiting class.

At 6-foot-2 and 243 pounds, Owens is considered the No. 451 overall prospect, No. 23 tight end and No. 15 player from the state of Tennessee in this current cycle, according to 247Sports Composite rankings. He was primarily recruited to Michigan by assistant coach Grant Newsome, who served as the Wolverines’ tight end coach for the past two seasons but has since been moved to offensive line by head coach Sherrone Moore. This offseason, Moore hired Massachusetts offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Steve Casula to coach the U-M’s tight end room in 2024.

Casula added to Michigan’s tight end haul in the 2025 recruiting class by landing a commitment from high four-star Center Valley (Pa.) Southern Lehigh standout Andrew Olesh, who gave his pledge to the Wolverines on July 8. It’s unlikely that U-M will add another tight end in this recruiting cycle, but the coaching staff must be thrilled to have both Owens and Olesh in the fold.

Currently, Michigan has 16 high school prospects committed to their 2025 recruiting class, which ranked No. 12 in the country and No. 3 in the Big Ten behind only Ohio State and Oregon. The Wolverines’ average player rating of 91.63 is the eight-best mark in the nation.

– Enjoy more Michigan Wolverines coverage on Michigan Wolverines On SI –

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Former Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson was asked on the red carpet at the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony Saturday night if it was OK to still call him CJ2K?

“It will always be OK to call me that,” he said with a big smile.

Johnson acquired the rhythmic moniker 15 years ago after accomplishing a remarkable feat that has been done by just seven other NFL players. He rushed for more than 2,000 yards in the 2009 season on the way to being named the NFL offensive player of the year and an All-Pro.

Such a rare achievement went a long way in helping Johnson become the youngest member of the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame 2024 class, and at 38, one of the youngest ever enshrined.

“Going into that last game knowing how many yards I needed to get 2,000 and going into that meeting with coach Jeff Fisher, the whole coaching staff, the whole entire team was behind me,” Johnson said at the Omni Nashville Hotel. “They had my back. Everybody was doing everything in their power so I could break 2,000 yards.”

Johnson, who never hid his desire to be an NFL megastar, crossed the 2,000-yard plateau at 2,006 after rushing for 134 yards on 36 carries in a 17-13 win over the Seattle Seahawks. He had broken Earl Campbell’s single-season franchise record for rushing yards (1,934) in the first half.

Johnson gathered on the field after the game with his offensive linemen, fellow running back LenDale White and running backs coach Earnest Byner for a photo to mark the memorable occasion. He later purchased watches with “2000-Yard Season” engraved on them for the starting offensive linemen and tight end Alge Crumpler.

The Buffalo Bills’ O.J. Simpson was the first player to rush for 2,000 yards when he did it in 1973. Derrick Henry is the most recent to do it, in 2020, making the Titans the only team to have two 2,000-yard rushers.

The franchise has long been known for producing outstanding running backs, and Johnson said he was honored to be among the best in that group. With 7,965 career yards, he is the franchise’s fourth all-time leading rusher behind Eddie George (10,009), Henry (9,502) and Campbell (8,574).

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“You see it on the internet all the time, questions like, ‘Who’s got the best running backs of all-time as a franchise?’ ” Johnson said. “When you’ve got guys like Earl Campbell, Eddie George, Derrick Henry and myself, I feel like we’re the best. To be amongst that group is amazing.”

Johnson said he is close to those three players, as well as with White. Johnson and White established themselves as “Smash and Dash,” and Johnson is quick to give White credit for helping him be as productive as he was on the field.

“C.J. is my best friend, but more than that he’s like a brother. He’s family,” said White, who attended Johnson’s induction ceremony. “I’m amazed to see where he took his life. I’m blessed and I’m thankful to be his friend. I don’t see how I couldn’t have been here tonight when you look back at our time on the field — Smash and Dash, the combo.”

Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on X @MikeOrganWriter.