He’s not even the full-time starter at safety, but Theo Jackson did whatever he could to make plays for Tennessee football on Saturday in The Swamp. And the fact that he never quit playing was enough for us to put him on this list alone, as many other Vols would have packed it up and gone home early.
Jackson finished the game with six tackles and a pass breakup. He also came away with an interception on the drive following Brian Maurer’s interception. At that point, UT was down 24-3, but it was still in the third quarter, so there was reason to believe in an improbable comeback. As a result, Jackson kept playing and was rewarded.
Of course, Alontae Taylor came away with an interception on the next Florida drive, so he and Jackson both kept playing. But Jackson came through in other ways with those tackles, and he also came through with it being more of a game despite the 24-3 score not suggesting as much. So we give him credit on here.
Guys like Jackson and other defenders should be incredibly angry at the Vols’ offense for what happened on Saturday. They fought their guts out until the very end, but they could only do so much. Jackson never quit playing and earned this spot as a result.