With the start of the 2012 season all but upon us, anticipation is running high on all fronts. It's typical for any football team to be primed and ready for their first game, a feeling the rigors of fall camp help reinforce. As a result of how 2011 ended though, this Tennessee team seems to have more impetus than usual for wanting the chance at a fresh start, and nowhere is that feeling more pronounced than on the offensive line.

The Vols' offensive front is well-stocked with veterans and sprinkled with players who arrived in Knoxville as highly regarded prospects. It's a group that almost uniformly was pressed into action against stiff competition early in their careers, and in some cases, perhaps earlier than was ideal.

The result of all that hard won experience is an offensive front that boasts starting experience at every position except one. And that 'one' new starter is sophomore Antonio Richardson is arguably the most purely talented player of the bunch.

Because of all those factors, it's widely assumed that this year's offensive line will be vastly improved from last year's edition, a group that had a large hand in the Vols' finishing last in the SEC in rushing yards per game (90.1 per game).

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