Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer still isn’t saying how much Justin Harrell will play Saturday.

He just can’t be sure.

But he is certain of two things —his senior defensive tackle will start and he will be one of UT’s team captains when seventh-ranked Florida visits Neyland Stadium. Kickoff is 8 p.m. (TV: WVLT).

"I think he’ll play as much as he possibly can," Fulmer said after Thursday’s practice. "He’s a little bit sore from (Wednesday’s) practice, but that was expected.

"I’ll bet he’ll play quite a bit, but I don’t know that for sure."

Harrell surprised everyone when he announced to coaches Tuesday he wanted to play one final game in a UT uniform. That came after suffering a ruptured tendon in his left bicep against Air Force last Saturday.

"He’ll start," Fulmer said. "A guy who does that, I’m not going to put him on the bench."

The preseason first-team All-SEC selection is scheduled to undergo surgery on the arm next week. He’s wearing a long brace on his left arm to offer support.

In UT’s first two victories against Cal and Air Force, Harrell totaled four tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss.

Fulmer said the staff wouldn’t take any chances with Harrell’s future if he notices any problems against the Gators.

"Some of the strength in his arm may be a bit limited, but he’ll do all right," Fulmer said. "We’ll see how much he can do. We’re not going to keep him out there if there’s an issue."

Turk At Tackle: The return of Harrell for Saturday’s game won’t likely affect Turk McBride’s role.

McBride should remain at tackle after moving inside from end following Harrell’s injury.

McBride started at end, but progress made there by Xavier Mitchell, Robert Ayres and Wes Brown allowed McBride to move back to tackle.

"I think it gives us that extra guy," defensive line coach Dan Brooks said. "We would plan on playing Turk inside more because of the progress X (Xavier Mitchell) and Robert Ayres and Wes and those guys have made."

Mitchell will start in McBride’s place at end.

Johnson At Game: Inky Johnson, who suffered a season-ending injury against Air Force, will be at the Florida game, but he won’t be on the sideline.

"He’ll be in the pressbox probably," Fulmer said. "He’s not allowed to be anywhere he might get hit."

Johnson underwent surgery at UT Medical Center to repair damaged blood vessels and must have another operation to repair nerve damage in his upper right extremity resulting from a violent collision late in the fourth quarter.

Injury Update: Tailback Arian Foster, offensive lineman Ramon Foster and linebacker Jerod Mayo all returned to practice on Thursday after resting injured ankles.

The role of Foster is still up in the air going into the Florida game.

"I don’t know," Fulmer said. "We’ll have to see. It’s going to have to be one of those game-time decisions.

"He did a little bit more (Thursday) than he did (Wednesday). He ran some plays, but that’s a tough position to have an ankle injury."

If Foster can’t go, Fulmer’s confident in Montario Hardesty, LaMarcus Coker and David Yancey filling the void.

"I think Montario and LaMarcus will do fine," he said. "I really do.

"Yancey can give us some plays along the way."

Hardesty stepped in when Foster suffered his ankle injury against Air Force and rushed for 72 yards and one touchdown on 19 carries. He’s averaging 5.3 yards a carry.

Looking For The Little Things: Fulmer was upbeat after Thursday’s workout and said he felt his team was prepared.

The UT staff is still searching for some young players to step up from a depth standpoint, but Fulmer stressed he’s looking at the little things as well.

"In a game like this, somebody that’s resting somebody on punt coverage, or resting somebody on kickoff coverage, can do something really special," he said. "We want them to have the right kind of energy and attitude out there.

"Like I told them, it might not get on SportsCenter or make it into the newspaper, but it could be really crucial to a win. That’s the theme I’ve kept pounding into this football team."

Looking For Some Turnovers: The Vols have been reminded this week of some big plays in UT-Florida meetings of the past, especially one made by Al Wilson in 1998.

"A few years ago, Al Wilson stripped the ball 14 yards down the field and I think Darwin Walker recovered it," Fulmer said. "It may come down to a break like that.

"These games have almost always been really close and come down to a few plays."

Williams At Fork Union: Three members of UT’s 2006 signing class are expected to enroll at UT in January.

Defensive lineman/linebacker Gerald Williams of Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., has enrolled at Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy. Williams was denied entrance to UT by the NCAA Clearinghouse in 2005 and 2006.

Athlete Stephaun Raines is taking a class in his hometown at Dalton (Ga.) Community College in order to meet his eligibility requirements.

Lineman Cody Pope has returned home to San Diego. Pope is expected to be cleared by the NCAA soon.

Dave Hooker and Drew Edwards contributed to this report