Tennessee suffered a major setback to its offensive line on Tuesday when the school found out that guard Jason Respert would be out for the remainder of the season, the Tennessean reported.

The sophomore was scheduled to have exploratory surgery Tuesday on his ankle sprain, but the injury turned out to be more serious.

"This is not what I was looking forward to," Respert told the Tennessean. "I just thought it was an ankle sprain and I would be out for a few weeks, but it didn't happen that way. I guess everything happens for a reason."

Tennessee, 3-0 and No. 7 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' poll, will play Georgia (2-1) on Saturday. The Vols are coming off a 26-18 victory over LSU.

During Tuesday's surgery, Respert had a surgical screw placed in his right ankle after doctors determined that the joint was unstable.

The Vols will ask the NCAA for a medical redshirt year for Respert, the Tennessean reported. He has played in only three games and didn't play past the fifth game this season.

Respert isn't the only Tennessee offensive lineman likely to miss Saturday's game against Georgia, the Tennessean reported. Senior tackle Reggie Coleman remains questionable with a high ankle sprain. He was wearing a large boot brace on his right ankle Tuesday.

"The main thing is getting the swelling and the inflammation to where I can play on it," Coleman told the newspaper. "You want to make sure it's strong enough that I won't re-injure it again. I'm trying my best to get back out there ASAP. I'm aiming for Georgia. If I can't, I'm positive I'll be there against Alabama."

On defense, senior right end Will Overstreet is out indefinitely with a partially torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee.

"We've got some guys down, but there aren't going to be any excuses," John Henderson, the Vols' senior captain and defensive tackle, told the Tennessean. "We've got guys who've been waiting, and now it's their turn. That's what a team is. You pick up each other." "Injuries are a part of the game," head coach Phillip Fulmer told the Tennessean. "The teams that can overcome those injuries, as we have in the past, are the teams that will continue to do well and win. Don't look for any dropoff."