Believe it or not, Tennessee Football actually had some players who performed quite well on Saturday when the Vols lost to the Georgia Bulldogs. UT not being in the same league as the Dawgs talent wise overshadowed that, but certain players did everything they could to make it a game. Here are the five torchbearers on Rocky Top from the game.
5. Chas Nimrod
Although Squirrel White led the team in receiving with five catches for 45 yards, Chas Nimrod had five catches for 44 yards. He had three catches for 35 yards on UT’s only scoring drive after the opening drive, and White did have a drop, so Nimrod did a good job filling in for Bru McCoy and Dont’e Thornton. We can add that he should’ve had a touchdown catch, but his arm was held, and it wasn’t called.
4. Omarr Norman-Lott
Honestly, Omarr Norman-Lott, Omari Thomas and Elijah Simmons all deserve credit. They actually played well in helping the Vols stop the run, one thing that they did do right on the day. Norman-Lott was the best of the bunch, as he came away with five total tackles, and although only one was solo, he consistently got the necessary push.
3. Tyler Baron
Part of stopping the run came from the Tennessee Football edge rushers. Both Tyler Baron and James Pearce Jr. played well on that front, but Baron had the highest PFF grade of anybody on the team at 87, and he had a tackle for a loss, so he gets the nod. Thanks to the efforts Baron put in with the defensive tackles, Georgia actually averaged under four yards a carry.
2. Aaron Beasley
A good push allows your weakside linebacker to make plays in the backfield, and that’s exactly what Aaron Beasley did. He came away with two tackles for a loss, including a sack, in the game, and he also recovered the one Georgia fumble. Although UT had issues on the back seven, that was in pass coverage, and Beasley’s job is to attack the line. He did it fine.
1. Jaylen Wright
Was anybody else going to make this list? Tennessee Football had one great play all game, and it was Jaylen Wright’s 75-yard touchdown run on the first snap from scrimmage. Wright finished with nine carries for 90 yards, so the rest of his day was bad, but he wasn’t used enough, and it didn’t help that Javontez Spraggins got hurt. He still earned this spot.
