Another Nico Iamaleava kind of situation for the Tennessee Vols? Unfortunately, that's what appears to be the case for head coach Josh Heupel and his staff. Seemingly out of nowhere, Boo Carter has one foot in with the program and one foot out.
Rumors were flying to start the week and reporter Adam Sparks confirmed things with his sources. Per Sparks, Carter has missed multiple team workouts and he has angered veteran leadership in Knoxville due to his poor attitude.
Sound familiar? Heupel is reportedly going to address the situation next week, but it's up in the air if Carter is going to be donning an orange jersey this season. From our chair, there's only one decision Heupel has on the table with fall camp around the corner. That decision is to dismiss Carter from the program to remind everyone that no one - absolutely no one - comes before the whole team.
Tennessee standout Boo Carter missed numerous team activities, and he was confronted by team leaders because of his absence.
— Adam Sparks (@AdamSparks) July 23, 2025
Could this escalate like the Nico Iamaleava situation? Or can this be repaired?
Tennessee fans deserve stability.https://t.co/4eh3lYcVzC
Josh Heupel has one move to keep Tennessee safe from Nico Iamaleava ripple effects
Tennessee went through something like this with Iamaleava this spring. He was a no-show for a practice and essentially ghosted the team before deciding to enter the transfer portal. Heupel had enough, called a team meeting and said the Vols were moving on without him.
A message was sent to all of the players. Heupel claimed that there's nobody bigger than the 'Power T.' With Carter pulling some similar stunts, upsetting teammates in the process, it's clear there's already some division among the players with camp less than a week away.
It won't be fair to everyone else if Heupel just lets Carter get away with this. Could the standout defensive back, who is expected to play receiver for the Vols this season too, earn his way back onto the team by apologizing to everyone and showing remorse? Sure, that would actually be awesome to see.
However, if he doesn't do that, acts like nothing happened and continues to act in a selfish manner, then Heupel will have no choice but to move on here as well. Carter is a stud playmaker and he's got all the potential to be a two-way threat in the SEC this fall.
The thought of not having him out on the field for Heupel and defensive coordinator Tim Banks is truly worrisome, but there's also a code of conduct that must be followed. It won't be easy, but a parting of ways needs to seriously be considered by Heupel and Co.