If you’re looking for a leader after Tennessee lost one of its best, the quiet guy who is projected to be chosen in the first round of the NFL Draft is worth a glance.
No, I don’t expect EDGE rusher James Pearce Jr., to suddenly become a rah-rah guy. He’s by all indications a quiet guy. However, silence can be powerful. Pearce never complained when the Vols limited his snaps in games they knew they could win without him. That leadership was evident if Pearce had to hold his tongue when he was asked about supposedly not having an impact earlier this season, which is an outright untruth.
Pearce did have an impact earlier this season. Teams had to scheme around him, which opened things up for other other Vol defenders. Before Pearce dominated the Gators on Saturday with a strip sack on the Vols’ own goal line. Pearce also rang up seven tackles with one tackle for a loss and a half-sack in addition to that strip that will go down as one of the most memorable memories in the Tennessee-Florida series. Well, at least for UT fans.
What makes Pearce such a great leader is that he continued to play hard even when the statistics weren’t there. Pearce didn’t register more than 1/2 a sack before he had one against Arkansas. He now has two on the season and four tackles for a loss. That may not read like a superstar, but Pearce is one no matter what the stat sheet says – and he doesn’t complain. He just continues to play and practice hard.
“I wouldn’t say there’s anything different in his effort strain,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said. “There’s been a few more times where he’s had an opportunity to make the play and he’s made the play, but he’s played really well all year long.
“A couple of huge plays in the game, the other night. You know things that you don’t take for granted but expect him to make. And he’s played really well. So, um, within the structure of what we’re doing, assignment sound. And, uh, playing at a really high level.”
