Tennessee had a clear mission this offseason — remaking their entire defense. Josh Heupel went out of his comfort zone to fire Tim Banks and bring in Jim Knowles, along with a number of new names out of the transfer portal. None were bigger than that of Chaz Coleman, who will become Tennessee’s top pass rushing option at the LEO spot this fall.
Coleman follows Knowles in from Penn State, one of four Nittany Lions to make that exact move. Coleman tops the depth chart at LEO following the departures
of Jordan Ross and Caleb Herring. The 6-4, 246 pound edge rusher was the No. 7 overall player in the transfer portal this year, according to 247Sports.
ESPN, which ranks Tennessee as the No. 24 team in the country in their way too early rankings for 2026, named Coleman as the biggest transfer portal addition for the Volunteers this offseason.
“Coleman, the No. 4 edge in ESPN’s transfer rankings, played only 144 snaps in his true freshman season at Penn State but flashed big-time potential with 12 pressures, three TFLs and a strip sack against Florida International that he returned 39 yards. He had to put on 25 pounds during his first offseason with the Nittany Lions to get up to 250. Now it’s time to take a step in his development and prove he can become a three-down player in the SEC. The Vols brought in his DC Jim Knowles and three more Penn State defenders in Xavier Gilliam, Amare Campbell and Dejuan Lane this offseason, which should make the transition to SEC ball even smoother for a talented young pass rusher whose best football should be ahead of him.” — ESPN
Coleman’s athleticism really stands out despite the limited snaps. The length and ability to bend should show up early for Tennessee this fall as Knowles tries to transform this unit after a dreadful showing in 2025.
Tennessee also added Jordan Norman out of the transfer portal to address depth. The Volunteers were left with only Christian Gass at the position at the beginning of the offseason. Tennessee did sign 4-star Zach Groves, 4-star Hezekiah Harris, 3-star Kedric Golston and 3-star CJ Edwards in the class of 2026. Based on numbers alone, you could see a couple of these guys get playing time pretty early on.
Tennessee will get their first look at Coleman and the rest of the new additions next month when they kickoff spring practice.
