Athlon is one of the premier sports outlets in the country, and they’ve been high on the Vols since the offseason began. They put Tennessee No. 7 in the country in their preseason poll and have the Vols winning the SEC East and facing Alabama in the SEC Championship Game.
Now, Athlon has put a plethora of Vols on its All-SEC teams.
Athlon has 11 Vols on their four All-SEC squads, which is tied with Florida and Georgia for the most on the All-SEC teams in the SEC East. But unlike those two teams, the Vols have several players on the First-Team squad.
Georgia, Missouri, and South Carolina have no players on Athlon’s First-Team All-SEC list. Florida, Kentucky, and Vanderbilt all have one each. Tennessee has six First-Team All-SEC selections, tied with Alabama for the most in the league.
The six Vols that make Athlon’s First-Team are running back Jalen Hurd, offensive lineman Jashon Robertson, defensive end Derek Barnett, linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin, Evan Berry as kick returner, and Cam Sutton as punt returner. Sutton is also on the Second-Team defense as a defensive back, and running back Alvin Kamara and quarterback Josh Dobbs are on the Second-Team offense.
Trevor Daniel is the Third-Team punter, and Dylan Wiesman is a Fourth-Team offensive lineman.
Only Alabama (14) and LSU (12) have more overall All-SEC selections than the Vols according to Athlon. Tennessee and Georgia are the only two teams with two running backs on the First and Second-Team selections, and the Vols and Tide are the only two teams with both a defensive lineman and linebacker on the First-Team.
Tennessee looks to be the overwhelming favorite to win the SEC East by almost every media outlet. And they’ll likely see a great number of their players make All-SEC lists. And if Athlon is any indication, the accolades and praise are just getting started.
