ESPN released its annual top 100 players in college football earlier this week not including a single Tennessee football player on the list.
It was a slightly underwhelming 2023 for Tennessee as they posted a 9-4 (4-4 SEC) record with one ranked win (Iowa) and losses to rivals Alabama, Florida and Georgia.
But it was still a surprise that no Tennessee players landed on ESPN’s top 100 list. Three Vols landed on the two AP All-SEC teams including first team edge rusher James Pearce Jr, second team running back Jaylen Wright and second team center Cooper Mays.
Pearce was the most surprising snub from the list. Twenty-four SEC players landed on the list including two Alabama edge rushers Chris Braswell and Dallas Turner. But Pearce, who landed on the First Team All-SEC over Braswell, was left off.
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The 6-foot-5 North Carolina native totaled 18 tackles, 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and a pick six in his breakout sophomore season that saw him earned the third highest PFF grade amongst edge rushers nationally and the top grade amongst SEC players.
Wright was one of the SEC’s top running backs in his junior season, totaling 1,037 yards and four touchdowns on an extremely impressive 7.4 yards per carry. Totaling over 100 yards in six of 12 games, Wright became the first Tennessee running back to total 1,00-0 rushing yards since Jalen Hurd reached the mark in 2015.
Missouri running back Cody Schrader (No. 14) and Kentucky running back Ray Davis (No. 75) each landed on the list.
Wright is off to the NFL after an elite junior season while Pearce is returning to Tennessee for his junior season where he’ll likely enter the season as a Preseason All-American.
One Response
It’s not a surprise. The tools at ESPN have always had something against UT.
Kinda seems personal…