According to a report from On3’s Steve Wiltfong, Arion Carter has withdrawn his name from the 2026 NFL Draft. The rising senior linebacker will now hit the transfer portal, searching for a home for his final season of college football.
Carter is obviously not expected to return to Tennessee. The Volunteers and new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles have been working overtime in the transfer portal to overhaul the defensive roster. One of those tasks on Knowles’ to-do list was replacing Carter, who declared for the NFL Draft in December.
Advertisement
Tennessee has since signed Amare Campbell at linebacker, who will join his old coach in Knoxville after spending last season at Penn State. Jeremiah Telander, Edwin Spillman and Jadon Perlotte round out the group with other young players trying to get in the mix.
Carter comes from Smyrna and was a huge get for Tennessee on the recruiting trail. Josh Heupel was able to beat out Nick Saban and Alabama at the time. A two-year starter in Knoxville, Carter led the team in tackles with 76 this past season, despite missing time with turf toe. He was named All-SEC second team following the 2025 season.
Wiltfong’s report names Alabama and Texas A&M as the early schools to watch for Carter, who was a leader for Tennessee. Maybe this is due to a draft evaluation, maybe this is due to his lingering injury that just wouldn’t go away during the second half of the season — either way, the timing just didn’t work for Tennessee to bring him back with Campbell already in place.