Very few defensive players stood out Saturday for Tennessee football. The linebackers were the only unit without fault, but they didn’t do anything special. It was obviously atrocious on the defensive line, and as has been the case all year, the secondary had just enough lapses to cost the Vols a chance to make this a game.
However, one guy who was surprisingly not part of those lapses was Nigel Warrior. And when he wasn’t part of them, he was standing out in a big way. The 6’0″ 190-pound legacy player who is from Georgia finally lived up to what he was supposed to be, which is a glue guy who makes the non-glamorous plays for the unit.
Warrior led the team in tackles with 10, and it’s fine if a safety racks up those numbers as opposed to a cornerback. Meanwhile, he also had two passes defended, and he fought hard in one-on-one coverage all day. Guys like Bryce Thompson and Warren Burrell made a few nice plays, but Warrior was the most consistent player for the whole unit.
He is also the one player who did not deserve any blame for some of the lapses, which was not the case against the BYU Cougars or Florida Gators. As a result, he earned a spot on this list, and it was a long-time coming. Maybe this game was a turning point for him.