Tennessee’s linebacker room this fall camp looks like quite similar on the surface to what Brian Jean-Mary inherited in his first season on Rocky Top.
Yet when you take a deeper look into Jean-Mary’s linebacker room, you see potential for the position to take a step forward in year two under Josh Heupel.
Jeremy Banks and Aaron Beasley are back for another season as the expected starters. But it’s the potential depth behind the duo that has sparked cautious optimism as the Vols approach its Sept. 1 season-opener against Ball State.
“We’ll be disappointed if we don’t have better depth (at linebacker) based on the number of bodies that we have,” defensive coordinator Tim Banks told the media at the beginning of fall camp. “We’re not going to ever put the program in jeopardy. We’re going to put the best guys out there that give us the best opportunity to win. I think those guys understand that we would like to play as many guys as we can.”
The reason for increased optimism at linebacker exists because of the health of senior Juwan Mitchell.
Mitchell, who transferred from Texas last offseason, missed most of the 2021 season due to shoulder surgery. The former Longhorn is healthy as he’s been in nearly two years, however, and looking to help the linebacker room take the next step.
“Juwan’s been a model of consistency these first three days,” Jean-Mary said. “He’s gotten all the surgeries behind him, and he’s probably as healthy as he’s been in a long time, so you’re starting to see the best parts of him. But he’s been really good these first three days.
“Just like every team in the country, everybody’s trying to build depth. If (Mitchell) is able to come in and be able to contribute at a high level, we’ll feel like that just adds to our numbers. With the way we play and score, we have to have several linebackers ready to play, so the depth — especially with the wear and tear that you get in this conference — the more quality linebackers you have, the better you have a chance to be better on defense.”
Mitchell played in 21 games at Texas with 13 starts, collecting 101 tackles with eight tackles for a loss, three sacks, five pass breakups and one fumble recovery. He led the Longhorns in tackles in 2020 (62).
“Juwan was a guy who had some really significant reps for us last fall before he got injured,” Banks said. “He started to work his way back a little bit in the spring. Obviously the health issue is always the very first thing. You’ve got to make sure he’s feeling healthy, which I think we’ve turned the corner that way.”
A healthy and productive Mitchell paired with veterans in Banks and Beasley would certainly help the linebacker room take a step forward.
Banks returns as a Preseason All-SEC selection after leading the team in tackles last season. His 128 tackles ranked second in the SEC and tied for seventh in the country.
The Memphis native will suit up next to Aaron Beasley, who looks to build upon a junior season in 2021 in which he finished the year as the Vols’ second-leading tackler with 84, and 7.5 tackles for loss.
“(Banks) does kind of predict the temperature of the team and when he comes out and has the right type of energy and juice, the whole team feeds off that — obviously, the defense more than the offense,” Jean-Mary said. “But if he keeps going in that direction, expect for him to have a big year in every aspect — as a stack linebacker, a blitzer and a coverage linebacker — because he has that kind of ability.
“Aaron Beasley’s had a great camp, too. When the pads came on today, he showed up a couple times, too, which is great. You could see him growing.”
In addition to the return of sixth-year senior Solon Page, it's not just the veterans of the linebacker room that is sparking hope. It's also the addition of the two freshman linebackers that signed over the offseason.
Elijah Herring of Murfreesboro, Tennessee and Kalib Perry of Georgetown, Kentucky didn't sign with the Vols as widely-known recruits, but the two are already turning heads within the program.
Herring in particular is benefiting from enrolling early back in January.
“I look for him to be a contributor this year," Jean-Mary said of Herring. "Elijah’s as mature of a freshman as you can find. Sometimes I forget. He looks like he’s 25 years old when you look at him in the face, and you forget this was a kid that left high school early and was able to come through spring. But I think his comfort level with what we’re doing on defense and just understanding the tempo of how we play on offense and how it’s going to be on Saturdays has helped him."
As for Perry, his athleticism has flashed in the early stages of his first fall camp as a Vol.
“When we took him, he was a more athlete than linebacker," Jean-Mary said. "Athletically, he’s probably in the top 10 percent of the team already. He’s got that type of athletic ability. We’ve just got to get him fundamentally to the point where he can play stack linebacker and work within a college defense.
"But we’ve been thrilled with him. He flashes. Just in these three days, he does some jaw-dropping stuff. We’ve just got to get him to be consistent where he can go and work within the framework of our defense. But super-smart kid, asks the right questions. And I think his best football is ahead of him, for sure.”
Kickoff with Ball State in the opener is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.
