Offseason position analysis: Defensive line
- Wyeth Wilson
- Jun 5, 2015
- 2 min read
What a difference a couple recruiting classes can make.
In the time span from when Butch Jones arrived at Tennessee before the 2013 season to now, this group has gone from a team weakness to one of the best position units on the team.
The 2014 defensive line was an already solid group consisting of Curt Maggitt (a defensive end-linebacker hybrid), Derek Barnett, Danny O’Brien, Owen Williams, and Corey Vereen.
But the 2015 recruiting class takes this group to the next level.
Shy Tuttle, Kyle Phillips, and Kahlil McKenzie are all rated as five-stars by at least one recruiting service, and Andrew Butcher and Darrell Taylor are consensus four-star players.
The two most important players of this group are without a doubt Barnett and Maggitt.
Maggitt finished with 11 sacks (second in the SEC), and Barnett finished with ten (third in the SEC).
Barnett also compiled 20.5 tackles for a loss last season, which is good for sixth in the country. It’s safe to say that Barnett’s freshman season was a success.
Tennessee’s defensive line as a whole last season could be considered a strength on the team, which is surprising considering how much uncertainty surrounded it prior to the season.
At the beginning of the 2014 season, all of the starters on the defensive line were first-time starters at UT.
For 2015, Tennessee looks to take this unit to the next level.
If the defensive line gets even better, Tennessee immediately will become more competitive with teams like Oklahoma and Alabama.
The Vols have been losing the battle in the trenches badly to teams like that for the last several seasons, but that might be about the change.
Barnett and Maggitt alone would make a respectable line, but if McKenzie, Tuttle, and Phillips live up to the hype, the Vols will have one of the best defensive lines in the SEC.
When this group is fully developed, Tennessee’s opponents will have a lot to prepare for.
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