After a brief but wild weekend of ‘will-he-or-won’t-he,’ Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter officially announced that he is coming back home to the Vols for the 2026 season. The star player declared for the NFL Draft in December, then entered the transfer portal last Friday, but finally decided Knoxville is where he belongs.

“BREAKING: Arion Carter is coming back to Tennessee,” Austin Price on X. “He details his decision to return for one last ride on Rocky Top!”

One of the main reasons for the 180-degree turn seems to be a lingering medical issue. Carter suffered a painful turf toe injury for most of the 2025 season and recently learned it was still severe enough to prevent him from participating in physical drills for NFL scouts.

Instead of going into the draft at less than 100%, he decided to stay in school to get healthy, finish his degree, and try to boost his draft stock for next year. For a minute there, it looked like he was definitely leaving Tennessee for a rival school.

When he first hit the transfer portal, he was ranked as the No. 1 linebacker available. Schools like Georgia and Texas were ready to welcome him with open arms. Plus, Tennessee had already signed a big-time transfer from Penn State, Amare Campbell, to take his spot. So many fans believed the bridge had been burned.

However, Coach Josh Heupel and his staff didn’t want to let their leader walk away that easily. They spent the weekend talking with Carter to figure out a way for him to play alongside the new guys rather than be replaced by them.

By Sunday night, Carter put an end to all this drama with a simple IG story: “I’m back home! #VFL.”

Having Carter back has to be the biggest offseason win for Josh Heupel. Even while playing hurt last year, he was causing some ruckus in the trenches. In just 10 games, he led the team with 76 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and was also named second-team All-SEC.

Now that he’s returning to play alongside Amare Campbell, Tennessee’s linebacker room has gone from a significant question mark to one of the most talented units in the conference over the weekend. However, that wasn’t the only dub Tennessee scored this weekend.

Josh Heupel bags Deion Sanders’ QB

The Vols added depth to their QB by snagging Ryan Staub away from Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes. Staub was one of the longest-tenured players under Deion Sanders. He stuck around for three years and mostly backed up Shedeur Sanders. He decided it was time for a change of scenery once Sanders chose to prioritize Julian Lewis.

This move is a huge insurance policy for the Vols. The Tennessee quarterback situation is in a bit of a bind right now. Their QB1 of 2025, Joey Aguilar, is currently in the middle of a legal battle to get a sixth year of eligibility. Plus, nobody right now has any idea how that will end for the Vols.

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By the looks of the QB room, Staub isn’t just coming to sit on the bench. Yes, if Aguilar isn’t returning. He’s got two years of eligibility left and plenty of talent, having thrown for over 400 yards and three touchdowns.

Interestingly, Staub wasn’t the only Buffalo to trade the mountains for Rocky Top this week. Tennessee also landed Colorado cornerback Isaiah Hardge on the same day, basically doing a “double dip” into Deion’s roster.

With these additions, the Vols make it clear they are serious and hell-bent on pushing for the SEC title game and a playoff berth next season.