Tennessee’s defensive line has been a major strength of the program in recent years. The Vols’ two-deep in 2024 was one of the nation’s best and helped power a defense that, frankly, often carried Tennessee to 10 wins and a berth in the College Football Playoff.
This year’s group has a few more question marks, particularly after the split between Chaz Coleman and the program during the offseason. Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles has talked about the pass rush being a question mark going into the season,
with Chaz Coleman gone and Jordan Ross at LSU. Tennessee might need to find production elsewhere on the defense if someone can’t fill the LEO role adequately.
But it doesn’t sound like Tennessee defensive line coach Rodney Garner is pleased with the day-to-day performance of his players as we approach mid-August.
Garner spoke with the media on Wednesday, and it’s clear his players’ inconsistent performances on the practice field in camp have frustrated him.
“Obviously, even just coming out of yesterday, (we’ve) been very inconsistent. You have a good day, you have a bad day. Obviously, you’re not moving the needle when you’re going up and down. Can’t have those roller coaster moments, and like I told them this morning in our meeting, we have to be climbing that mountain every day. We can’t take steps backwards. And nobody’s got time to hear it, nobody wants to hear it, about being young, who all you lost, all that. That’s irrelevant. We have to be moving that needle every single day that we go out there on that field.
“(Mariyon Dye is) like all of them. He’s had some good days, had some bad days. We just have to keep stacking good on good. I asked them, do they want to be ‘a’ guy? Or do you want to be ‘the’ guy? Those are two different people. ‘A’ guy gets treated this way, ‘the’ guy gets treated that way. Right now, we have to have guys that are separating themselves, that are doing it all the time. They’ve got to get comfortable being uncomfortable. And if they can’t push themselves, they’ve got to allow somebody else to push them.”
Tennessee has seen a gradual exodus from that super-talented 2024 group, and the remaining crop doesn’t quite seem to have the same firepower. But there are a couple of new faces who could have a particular impact up front in Penn State transfer Xavier Gilliam and Tulane edge Jordan Norman. We don’t have a depth chart, but both are good bets to start at their respect positions, along with Tyree Weathersby and Daevin Hobbs.
We’ll find out a bit more in the team’s scrimmage on Saturday who can give those first flashes in game situations to better indicate who could emerge from this group. But for now, it appears as though Garner isn’t going to be letting up on anyone any time soon.
