Two Purdue Standouts to Opt Out of Music City Bowl

Tennessee (7-5) will head to the Music City after Christmas to take on the Purdue Boilermakers (8-4) in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl. Essentially a home game for the Vols, the matchup just got even more interesting, as Josh Heupel's team looks to close out his first season on Rocky Top with a victory.

Tennessee will not have to face Purdue's top two players, as wide receiver David Bell and defensive end Georgie Karlaftis have opted out of the bowl game to prepare for the draft, according to head coach Jeff Brohm.

Karlaftis, a havoc-wreaking defender, is projected to go inside of the top ten in April's draft after capping a stellar career at Purdue. Despite missing all but two games in 2020, Karlaftis accounted for 94 total tackles and 13 sacks during his career. The 6'4", 275lbs edge prospect appears to be a can't miss prospect at the next level. He will hear his name called early on Day One. Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker should definitely have more time to throw on December 30th with Karlaftis, not in the lineup.

Bell has been a dynamic offensive weapon for the Boilermakers and picked up right where former star Rondale Moore left off. Bell caught 93 passes for 1,286 and six touchdowns this season. During the course of his career, Bell caught 232 passes for 2,946 yards and 21 touchdowns.

Tennessee will be without Alontae Taylor, but so far, he is the only player on Tennessee's roster to opt-out of the bowl game.

On Saturday morning, Heupel addressed if any other players have informed him of a decision to opt-out of the bowl game.

"No. There are still some guys going through the process of making a decision, what's right for them and their future," he said. "We continue to help them through that process. The guys have been awesome. Whoever ends up showing up, we're ready to go play, but (we) anticipate having a pretty full roster."

Tennessee and Purdue will kickoff at 3:00 pm ET on December 30th at Nissan Stadium.