CFB Championship Picks: MVP Candidates
A former starting defensive lineman for the Tennessee football team is entering the transfer portal. According to a report from On3 Sports’ Matt Zenitz on Thursday, Tennessee defensive end Tyler Baron is entering the portal after just his sophomore season. Baron was the starting defensive end for the Vols’ first four games of the year and most recently the Music City Bowl.
Baron played in all 13 games for Tennessee this year and finished the season with several career highs. The second-year player from Knoxville Catholic High School by way of Nashville had 30 tackles, seven tackles for loss, and four sacks in 2021. In his career, Baron played in 22 games with Tennessee.
In rotation with edge rushers Byron Young and Roman Harrison, Tennessee’s defense led the league in tackles for loss for a significant portion of the season.
Baron’s father, Patrick Abernathy, was a member of the Tennessee staff for the past eight seasons and most recently served as the Vols’ director of player development. During his time at Tennessee, Abernathy worked under the last three head coaches (Jones, Pruitt, Heupel).
As a recruit in the 2020 class, Baron was a Top 150 recruit nationally at No. 118 and was the fourth-ranked player from the state of Tennessee according to 247 Sports.
