Tennessee defensive lineman Emmit Gooden will miss the 2019 season after suffering a torn ACL in his knee during Tuesday’s practice.
Vols coach Jeremy Pruitt on Wednesday confirmed the injury to Gooden, a candidate to start at nose tackle this season. Gooden started one game in 2018, his first season at Tennessee, and finished third on the team with seven tackles for loss to go with 33 total tackles. The 6-foot-3, 290-pound Gooden transferred to Tennessee from Independence Community College in Kansas, where he was featured on the third season of the Netflix series “Last Chance U.”
Gooden will have a year of eligibility remaining in 2020. Tennessee returns no starters on its defensive line from 2018.
Pruitt also told reporters that offensive lineman Nathan Niehaus has chosen to leave the team. Niehaus, a junior, started six games last season for the Vols.