Let’s be honest. You probably didn’t respect Will Brooks to be a true SEC football player coming into the season. Sure, you were rooting for the walk-on, but he couldn’t actually start and star among a group of far better defensive backs in the Vols’ secondary, right?
You might want to rethink that.
“Check out Brooksie, man!” Tennessee defensive lineman Omari Thomas exclaimed after the Vols’ beatdown of North Carolina State in a one-sided affair that included an 85-yard interception return by Brooks, a former walk-on, that practically ended any chance the Wolfpack had to stay in the game. “He’s always doing his job and doing everything right.
“If you do everything right off the field, it’s going to come to you on the field. That’s the type of guy Will is so I’m happy for Will…He’s a big piece of our team.”
Brooks, a former walk-on from Birmingham, Ala., credited coaching and a deft play call for his interception that occurred when Wolfpack quarterback Grayson McCall was flushed from the pocket and tried to complete a pass in the flat that was easily picked off by Brooks, who ran untouched into the end zone. All Brooks had to do was keep sprinting and watch himself on the Jumbotron to make sure he wouldn’t get caught from behind.
“I just saw the quarterback’s eyes and he kind of overthrew the ball a tiny bit,” said Brooks while multiple defensive players shouted his name during his post-game interview. “I was just able to count on that.”
The play wouldn’t have likely happened had it not been for defensive lineman Joshua Josephs, who applied the pressure and forced McCall to throw the ball over the pressure which caused the pass to sail.
“Our d-line is amazing,” Brooks said. “They get after the quarterback a lot so thankful they were making him feel pressure all night.”
Brooks was supposed to be lost amidst a rebuilt group of defensive backs that consisted of more talented players that had been waiting their turn on Tennessee’s roster or transferred in from other schools. Nevertheless, Brooks held onto his first-team safety role despite all oncoming challengers.
“They’ve come in and meshed really well with our team so it’s awesome to have them here and play beside them everyday,” Brooks said.
In some ways, the Vols’ defensive backfield still has not been tested. Tennessee’s entire defense overmatched Chattanooga thoroughly last week. Then, the Vols’ defensive line couldn’t be stopped by the Wolfpack, which made Tennessee’s secondary even better with less time needed to defend the pass.
“It definitely makes my life a little bit easier when quarterbacks don’t have time to throw,” Brooks said. “It’s great to be able to play behind them.”
That will almost certainly be a reoccurring theme for the Vols this season.
