Josh Heupel sees run defense as a positive for Tennessee

If Tennessee‘s run defense can pick up where they left off last season — they might put the SEC on notice in 2023. Head coach Josh Heupel said that it’ll have to be a group effort if they want to achieve the heights they’re expected to this year.

“The run game — part of it, the defensive line, interior and guys on the edge, but I thought our backers have done a great job fitting gaps and our safeties were involved in it too,” Heupel said. “And for a first scrimmage, I thought there was a positive sign of just our tackling in space. So I thought that was a real positive.

“Defensively as a whole, you guys have heard me say it before, when we got here, a lot of the kids that had left the program, not all of them, but a lot of them were on the defensive side of the football and within the first couple of years, we added some depth last year that helped us take a step, in particular in the run defense. I feel like we are continuing to add some real depth and competition. And that leads itself to real competition in practice.”

In 2022, the Vols ranked 21st nationally (sixth in the SEC) in rushing defense, allowing 115.8 yards per game on a 3.28 yard-per-carry clip. They allowed 15 rushing touchdowns in 13 total games as well, good for 1.2 scores per game — third-best in the SEC behind Georgia and Texas A&M.

The Vols return their top four defensive linemen in Roman Harrison, Omari Thomas, Tyler Baron and Bryson Eason, who contributed a combined for 52 tackles and nine sacks for Tennessee’s defense in 2022.

Leading tackler and linebacker Aaron Beasley returns after a productive 39-tackle, three-sack junior season. Heupel also brought in a few pieces from the transfer portal as well, adding DL Omarr Norman-Lott and EDGE Luke Shouse to the mix as well.

“Who’s gonna be the first one running out? How many snaps each guy’s gonna play. But the competition on the practice field in the meeting room is a coach’s best friend — and we have that,” Heupel said. “That’s in the interior, it’s out on the edges too. The athleticism, the ability to rush the passer and not just defend the run, it’s also showing up here in training camp too. I like some of the strides that we’ve taken.”

Tennessee kicks off its 2023 season against Virginia at home on Sept. 2. If the rushing defense can hold up, the Vols should be able to cover the 27.5-point spread with authority.