In 2012, Tennessee football had one of the most entertaining offenses to watch in school history…only to stumble to a 5-7 season and see Derek Dooley get fired with a historically bad defense. But the NFL kickoff game this year will feature one team with two players who were the anchors of that offense.
When the Chicago Bears host the Green Bay Packers Thursday night, one of their rotational receivers will be Cordarrelle Patterson. A junior-college transfer in 2012, he stepped in and immediately became in impact player for the Vols.
Patterson was Tennessee football’s second leading receiver that year with 46 receptions for 778 yards and five touchdowns, but he also had 25 carries for 308 yards and three touchdowns, making him the overall leader in yards from scrimmage with 1,086.