Tennessee receiver Cedric Tillman out against Florida

What has been feared since the middle of the Akron game has come true on Saturday morning. Tennessee will be without star receiver Cedric Tillman against Florida after suffering a high ankle sprain last week.

Tillman received treatment all week, but ultimately will remain on the sidelines today.

Things had been trending this way all week, and now we have official word. So what does this mean for Tennessee? It’s obviously a massive deal, just watch the Pittsburgh game for proof.

Bru McCoy now slides over into his place, while Jalin Hyatt will remain in the slot. It will be Walker Merrill and Ramel Keyton getting a bump up the depth chart. Both guys are more than capable and have been in this system for two years now, but the game-breaking ability of Tillman — particularly down the field — will be missed.

This also puts more pressure on the Tennessee run game, which really was non-existent against Pittsburgh. However, South Florida ran for nearly 300 yards against the Gators last week, so perhaps there will be some openings for Jabari Small, Jaylen Wright and Hendon Hooker.

Tennessee remains an 11 point favorite, per DraftKings Sportsbook. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.