Jan 2, 2015; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Tennessee Volunteers linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin (34) pressures Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Jake Rudock (15) into throwing an incomplete pass in the first quarter of their 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Phil Sears-USA TODAY Sports
Jalen Reeves-Maybin Is Vastly Underrated
As is the case with Jalen Hurd, Vol fans know all about Jalen Reeves-Maybin, but the rest of the nation isn’t in on the secret — yet.
The sophomore from Clarksville, TN finished the 2014 season with 101 tackles (compared to 14 as a freshman), including a career high 13 against Iowa in the Gator Bowl.
JRM (as he’s affectionately referred to by fans on social media) was more than just a tackle machine. He manned the weakside linebacker position for the Volunteers and was one of the biggest reasons that Tennessee’s edge defense looked immensely better in 2014 than in 2013.
The 11 tackles-for-loss that Reeves-Maybin accounted for were the third most by a Vol in 2014.
If you watched even just one UT game this season, you know that anytime there was a big defensive play, it seemed like JRM was right in the middle of it.
There’s absolutely no reason to think that Reeves-Maybin will fail to improve in 2015. I would fully expect him to be among the SEC’s top tacklers next season.