All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee football DE signee claims Vols have best defensive line in the country

By Caleb Calhoun

Nov 19, 2016; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers defensive lineman Jonathan Kongbo (1) returns an interception for a touchdown against the Missouri Tigers during the second half at Neyland Stadium. Tennessee won 63 to 37. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 19, 2016; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers defensive lineman Jonathan Kongbo (1) returns an interception for a touchdown against the Missouri Tigers during the second half at Neyland Stadium. Tennessee won 63 to 37. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Tennessee football defensive end signee Matthew Butler for this year claims the Volunteers have the best defensive line in the country.

One of the best defensive ends in Tennessee football history is gone and beginning his career in the NFL. Another elite pass-rusher on the other end has also departed, as did a third defensive end in the rotation.

Meanwhile, the rest of the guys on the Vols defensive line are unproven or have suffered numerous injuries since their time began in Knoxville.

But a three-star signee at defensive end for the 2017 Tennessee football recruiting class who hasn’t even set foot on campus yet is still promoting this team’s defensive line as the best in the country.

In an article by Patrick Brown of GoVols247, incoming freshman Matthew Butler stated his case as to why he thinks the Vols will have the best defensive line in the country this year.

"“I really feel like a healthy Tennessee D-line is the best D-line in the country with guys like Kahlil and Shy who are proven, but just injured, and athletic freaks like D.T. and Kongbo and me, and guys that have come in and put in a lot of work like Deandre (Johnson) and Quay (Picou).“Those are the guys that just come to my head. Those guys are doing awesome. I’m going to come in and I’m going to go to that standard and exceed it. If we all have that mindset, we’ll be a great defensive line.”"

Although the Vols have lost a lot of talent, Butler, a strong-side defensive end, could be onto something.

After all, Tennessee does have three five-stars that could be in the rotation if everybody’s healthy, including defensive end Kyle Phillips.

Tuttle was a four-star along with Alexis Johnson, who is looking to get back into football shape this year.

That’s five elite recruits, and then you have a veteran in Kendal Vickers who has developed every year in Knoxville along with Picou and Johnson, who are becoming reliable players as well.

Simply put, the talent is there, but the production will be difficult to replace.

So Butler is still probably stretching it a bit to say this could be the best defensive line in the country.

Home/Vols Football