Something got lost in Tennessee’s 2024 football season. Yes, you’re well aware that the Vols had offensive tackle issues and injuries were a part of the reason why Tennessee fell flat in the College Football Playoff, but what happened to James Pearce Jr.?
Perhaps you remember him. Pearce garnered some pretty high praise before the 2024 season as one of the best NFL prospects in college football. In fact, some draft analysts had him as the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft in April. That’s not going to happen.
Pearce is now on the cusp of slipping out of the first round per many mock drafts. That’s a shame. Either Pearce was woefully misevaluated, or he didn’t develop. That, of course, could have been his fault, or it could be Tennessee’s coaches’ fault. Was Pearce just not as motivated for his NFL contract year during his final season in college, or did the Vols not put him in the right position to make game-changing plays, which he rarely did last season? Well, it was probably a little bit of both.
Far too often Pearce was dropping into coverage, which he can do, but it just doesn’t seem like the best use of his talents, which are rushing the passer and creating havoc in the backfield. Well, at least that was supposed to be the case.
Pearce registered 7 1/2 sacks last season. For comparison’s sake, 30 college football players had more sacks. Pearce’s sack total ranked ninth in the SEC. For some perspective, South Carolina EDGE rusher Kyle Kennard led the SEC with 11 1/2 sacks.
That’s not what the Vols were expecting when they signed Pearce to a $1-million contract that was paid out in $100,000 monthly instalments last season, per records uncovered by Off The Hook Sports.
Tennessee’s coaches were quick to defend Pearce’s production – or lack thereof. Pearce did lead the Vols with 13 tackles for a loss, but he never took over a game, which is what elite pass rushers are supposed to do. Far too often Pearce was dropping back into pass coverage last season. Then, when he was lined up to rush the passer, he was often in a four-point stance, which doesn’t exactly lend itself to edge rushing.
There’s no doubt about it; Tennessee didn’t get the best out of Pearce last season. No, he wasn’t a failure in 2024, but he certainly didn’t have the impact that most expected.
Tennessee’s defensive line was predicated on numbers, as in the number of players that they could rotate in up front. Unfortunately, that didn’t lead to a number of big plays. The Vols’ much ballyhooed defensive front only accounted for only 29 sacks in 2024. That was eighth best in the SEC.
However, Tennessee was third best in the SEC in tackles for a loss with 100 last season. So let’s be clear: Tennessee’s defensive front was very good last season, but we may have thrown around the term “elite” just a bit too much.
One must credit the Vols for the way they defended the run last season. Tennessee ranked second in the SEC, allowing 104 rushing yards per game. Again, Tennessee certainly wasn’t bad on the defensive front, but one has to question that group considering how they performed against their best competition, such as Georgia, which racked up 453 yards of total offense in route to a 31-17 win over the Vols.
The other elite team that Tennessee faced did even better. Ohio State racked up 473 yards of total offense in its 42-17 thumping of the Vols. If Tennessee’s defense was indeed elite, it wouldn’t have gotten pushed all over the field – twice – last season.
The Vols ranked second in the SEC with 293 yards allowed per game last season. However, that stat is a bit misleading considering Tennessee’s non-conference schedule essentially was a series of gloried scrimmages. That certainly tilts the numbers in UT’s favor.
The simple fact is this: Tennessee’s defense was very good, but not elite last season. Moreover, Pearce was very good, but not even close to elite. That’s not all his fault. It’s difficult to rush the passer when you’re dropping into pass coverage.
