Leading up to Tennessee's September 4 season opener against Georgia Tech, WBIR will be featuring 22 Vols in player profiles, giving you a chance to get to know them better off the field plus analysis on the players from Wes Rucker of govols247.com.
With all the injuries to the offensive line last year, Marcus Tatum was forced to step up for Team 120. Now, with a year of experience under his belt, Tatum will play a pivotal role on the offensive line. With the suspension of tackle Drew Richmond for the first game of the season against Georgia Tech, Tatum will get a lot of snaps with the first unit.
Off the field, Tatum is a big video game guy, anything on Xbox, really. As for pro teams, Tatum roots for the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA and the Chicago Bears in the NFL.
Analysis from Wes Rucker of govols247.com
"Marcus Tatum is a guy, physically, I've liked a lot for a while now. He's grown into his body, he's about 280, 285 pounds now and I think it's a shame he couldn't redshirt last season because that would have been the best thing for the program and for him in the long run, but they weren't able to give him that season so he had to go out there and take some bumps, but I think now he'll be better for it. If you forget about him in the offensive line competition, I think you're making a mistake because this guy is good and he's getting better all the time. I think he'll be an NFL offensive tackle at some point, I think he's got that kind of upside, I think he's someone who could be a factor in Tennessee's offensive line this season in a big way."