Finally, Sullins is center of attention

Cody Sullins has gone from not good enough for Wofford to invaluable for Tennessee.

He's gone from walk-on backup to an opening day starter, from depth behind a preseason second-team All-SEC performer to his replacement.

But even when his long-time dream becomes a reality Saturday (TV: MyVLT2, 12:21 p.m.) against Western Kentucky, the Tennessee center still won't consider it the end of a fairy tale.

Those have happy endings, and the Vols are just getting started on one.

"It wouldn't mean a thing to come out here and start if we have a bad year," Sullins said. "It's all about winning, and I've been through a few of these losing seasons before and it's the worst feeling in the world. The whole city, the feeling around the team, everything, it just puts a whole damper on everything.

"I don't even want to think about it."

For the most part Sullins isn't thinking about what his first start is going to be like, and he's also trying not to dwell on just how far he's come over the last four years.

Whatever disappointment the senior might have had after losing his shot at a scholarship to Wofford has been gone for a while. Any days filled with doubt about ever playing for the Vols while sitting behind Josh McNeil on the sideline are now spent preparing for the role he held for the last 35 games before suffering a career-threatening knee injury.

And as long as it may have been since Sullins was a starter and as much work as he's had to put in since, all that really does is make the reward even sweeter.

"I mean, yeah, you go through your ups and downs," he said. "Four years is a long time, and you have those good days and the bad days. It's been a fun ride though.

"Those downtimes, you persevere through those and push through them and they show what kind of person you are. They show that you believe you can handle those types of situations and you'll have a bad day, but you come back even better than you were before. It just helps you move along a little each and every day throughout a year or your career."

The on-field part of it has largely been on hold, and that is admittedly a concern for coach Lane Kiffin.

But Sullins' knowledge of the offense has been impressive and UT believes he can make the right calls up front. Strength might not be his calling card at 278 pounds, but the Vols think he can make up for it with quickness. And it's hard to question his desire after spending so much time in the shadows.

"We hope he's ready, and we're trying everything to do it," Kiffin said. "But we'll never know until Saturday.

"We'll do everything up 'til game-time that we can, during the game, to help him and make sure that he's ready, but he has not played very much football (and) that's the only other guy besides the quarterback who touches the ball every snap."

That fact isn't lost on Sullins, though having a hand in UT's bid for a rebound season and on the ball every down along the way is exactly the reason he's worked so hard since arriving on campus.

It might not be a fairy tale, but it's at least one dream come true.

"You know, I always had this vision in the back of my mind that I wanted to work as hard I could and then have the possibility of earning a scholarship and getting an opportunity to play here," Sullins said. "It was always in the back of my mind, and I just took those steps - came in here, worked as hard as I could, prepared as hard as I could and in the end it paid off.

"I don't want to say it's a fairy-tale ending because it was always my goal to play well, earn a scholarship and do all those kind of things. I don't think I would change a thing even if I could see the future."

Clearly he can't - then Sullins would already know if the Vols are headed for Happily Ever After.

Austin Ward may be reached at 865-342-6274.