University of Tennessee Athletics
Castles, Small to Compete in 2024 East-West Shrine Bowl
January 31, 2024 | Football
FRISCO, Texas – Two Tennessee football members are gearing up to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl on Thursday in Frisco, Texas. The game is slated for a 6 p.m. ET kickoff live on NFL Network at Ford Center, the Dallas Cowboys' indoor practice facility.
Redshirt senior tight end McCallan Castles and senior running back Jabari Small will both represent the Volunteers in one of the premier college postseason all-star games.
Since 1925, the postseason bowl game has benefited Shriner's Children with the mission to provide excellent specialty care for children. The East-West Shrine Bowl is the longest-running college all-star game that provides national coverage on NFL Network and hosts NFL scouts on-site to watch the young stars.
Castles officially announced his bowl acceptance on Jan. 4. During his one-year stint with the Vols, the South Lake, California, native played in 13 games and caught 22 passes for 283 yards. Castles also notched a touchdown reception in five different games against Austin Peay, at No. 11/8 Alabama, UConn, Vanderbilt and No. 17 Iowa in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. His five receiving touchdowns were the most by a Vol tight end since Mychal Rivera logged five in 2012.
Castles had his best game of the season against UConn, when he logged 56 receiving yards and one touchdown on four catches in the Vols 59-3 victory.
Small, who spent the past four seasons on Rocky Top, continued to showcase his dependability and drive in the backfield in 2023. The veteran tailback played in 11 games and produced 475 rushing yards, averaging 5.0 yards per carry. The senior also added a pair of rushing touchdowns to finish with 24 total during his time at UT.
For his career, Small finished with 2,122 rushing yards, which ranks 16th all-time at Tennessee. The Memphis native also found the end zone 26 times (24 rushing, two receiving).
