‘Monster in the room’ Edwin Spillman eager for big year

Tennessee linebacker Edwin Spillman doesn’t want to talk about last year. The four-star in-state native was limited to just four games as a rookie due to a couple of injuries and was not a part of the rotation for much of the year.

When he was healthy, Spillman was a factor for position coach William Inge and the Tennessee defense. Now a year later, Spillman is eager to make up for some lost time.

“I’m very hungry. I don’t really want to talk a lot about last year, but this year I have been putting in the work,” the linebacker told the media in fall camp. “Grinding and been out there with my guys putting in the extra field work and all that. I’m excited to go out there and show it.”

The 6-foot-1, 230-pounder has a unique skillset. He displays a nice blend of size and speed and has the athleticism to play in space out of the box, which is needed for a linebacker in the college game right now. The redshirt-freshman, in many respects, is the best parts of the two guys in front of him on the depth chart right now and that will work nicely as the third of a three-headed monster for the second layer of the defense.   

“His ability to attack. He’s the combination of both Arion (Carter), with his speed and physicality, and (Jeremiah) Telander, with his ability to run through a wall. If you had a brick wall up, he’s like the Incredible Hulk, because he is going through the wall,” Inge said. “That’s what we love about Edwin. And that’s why he’s going to continue to keep on rising. He’s like yeast, every day he gets better, he gets taller, he gets bigger, everything that you want out of a player. It’s a blessing to have him on our football team.”

Competition brings out the best in everyone and just because all three of those guys are going to play a ton for Tennessee in the fall, it doesn’t mean they can’t work to out-perform each other on the practice field. Spillman, the youngest of the trio, is giving the two veterans all they can handle. That’s a great thing.

“Edwin would be what you would call, ‘the monster of the room’ because he doesn’t have to speak a lot, because you have Arion (Carter) and (Jeremiah) Telander there,” Inge continued. “But, when he does speak, he is very active, and he is someone who is, literally, biting the heels off of those guys when it comes to his performance, his actions, his leadership and his trust level.

“So, he is someone that we have a high regard for when it comes to putting him on the football field.”

The linebacker room looks completely different from where it was a few years ago for the Vols. There’s strength in numbers at the top with the experience of Carter and Telander, true depth with guys like Spillman and some freshmen – like Jaedon Harmon, Jaden Perlotte and Brendan Anes– along with redshirt-freshman Jordan Burns, who will ensure everyone is kept fresh. If injury strikes the room just as it has the past two seasons, Tennessee is better equipped to handle that adversity in 2025.      

Spillman, who keeps working to get better every single day, is a massive reason for that.

“Every day is an opportunity to get better. I just go out there with the mentality to get one percent better, even if it is just a little minute detail in my technique. Just get better at something,” the linebacker said. “From where I was a year ago to now, it is night and day. “The main focus is not getting too comfortable and settling – just to improve because that is the goal in the end.”