Tennessee football Smokey Points: Top 5 Vols performers at Vanderbilt

Kyle Phillips may have been the best player for the Vols this year, and he saw a resurgence in Jeremy Pruitt’s system. But nobody saw a bigger resurgence than Alexis Johnson Jr. Once a four-stat junior college transfer, Johnson barely saw the field until this year.

And throughout the year, with so much of a focus on Shy Tuttle, Johnson made it clear that he was a force to reckon with as well. He made numerous big plays on the season, all the way until his final game. So it’s only fitting that, like Phillips, he is a Tennessee football Smokey Point winner.

Johnson was part of a defensive line that tried its best to make this a game. He helped hold the Commodores to under two and a half yards a carry on the ground. But the big reason he’s on this list is his stat line.

In his final game on Rocky Top, Johnson had six tackles and two sacks. We said before the game that he would have to deliver for the Vols to have a chance because of how Vanderbilt struggles preventing linemen from making plays. Well, he delivered. Other players may not have done their part, but Johnson did. He was a playmaker all game for one final time, and it was enough for us to put him high on this list.