The growth of Tennessee football’s pass rush has been one of the biggest stories of the first half of its 2023 season. There were reasons to believe Tennessee’s defensive line would be moderately improved over last season despite losing leading sack man Byron Young to the NFL Draft.
But no one saw this level of production coming. The Vols have gone from boasting a solid defensive line that struggles to get home rushing four to a disruptive unit that is one of the SEC’s best against the run and pass.
The numbers bear it out. Tennessee ranks third nationally and second in the SEC with four sacks per game. The Vols’ run defense ranks first in the SEC and 10th nationally in rush yards allowed per carry.
As Tennessee defensive backs coach Willie Martinez said Tuesday, any defensive success is the product of all three levels playing strong, complimentary football. But those numbers do reflect a strong defensive front and the Pro Football Focus numbers tell a similar story about how dominant the Vols’ defensive line has been.
In four of Tennessee’s five games against FBS opponents (PFF doesn’t log analytics for FCS teams), the Vols’ opponent has earned their worst pass blocking grade of the season.
Virginia (28.4), Florida (53.6), South Carolina (27.2) and Texas A&M’s (22.9) all had its worse pass blocking performance against Tennessee. UTSA’s pass block grade against Tennessee was only its third worst of the season but the 43.6 grade is still very poor. Reminder: PFF’s grading scale is out of 99.
James Pearce Jr. is the biggest reason Tennessee’s pass rush has improved so radically this season. The sophomore LEO is a revelation and one of the nation’s most effective pass rushers. Pearce leads Tennessee with six sacks this season his 92.4 PFF pass rush grade ranks second nationally amongst players with 50-plus pass rush opportunities.
But Pearce isn’t the only player that’s making the Vols’ pass rush one of the nation’s best. Defensive end Tyler Baron is putting together his best collegiate season in his senior year. The instate native already has a career-high five sacks through six games and a 85.2 PFF pass rush grade that ranks 21st nationally amongst players with 50-plus pass rush opportunities.
Arizona State defensive tackle transfer Omarr Norman-Lott has been a strong addition to the Vols’ pass rush and defensive tackle Bryson Eason is playing the best football of his career.
With a struggling offense, Tennessee needs its defensive line— and particularly its pass rush— to keep putting together dominant performances. They have another golden opportunity this week as Tennessee heads to Tuscaloosa to face an Alabama team that’s allowed 15 sacks over its last three games.
The Crimson Tide’s pass protection is vulnerable. If Tennessee’s going to pull the upset on the road, its pass rush needs to dominate for the third straight SEC game.
