Tennessee football: 10 players Vols can’t afford to lose in 2020
Defensive back. Shawn Shamburger. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. player. 839. Senior. 2
Hometown: Mobile, Ala.
We’re sticking with the secondary here, and given how much Derrick Ansley ran the nickel package, a nickel back is more than capable of making it near the top of this list. Tennessee football is in trouble if Shawn Shamburger, it’s most experienced defensive back, has to miss games for any reason this year. Analytics show he may be their most important player.
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After arriving on Rocky Top in 2017 by way of Georgia despite being from South Alabama, Shamburger developed quickly. He then thrived last year, not allowing a touchdown pass in coverage and being rated the Vols’ best pro prospect overall by Pro Football Focus. Simply put, he emerged into a star, and he’ll need to do more of that this year for UT to be successful.
The 5’11” 190-pound graduate of Colquitt County High School in Moultrie, Ga. wouldn’t be as crucial if it didn’t come out that Baylen Buchanan was going to miss another year due to his spinal stenosis injury, but now, there’s again limited depth behind Shamburger. Cheyenne Labruzza and Warren Burrell could help out, but Shamburger is the most needed.
light. Related Story. 10 Vols with injury concerns for 2020
Like with Bryce Thompson, Shamburger is more crucial with Nigel Warrior gone. Both guys covered slot players at times, and Shamburger forced the worst quarterback rating of passes to slot receivers he guarded all year of any defensive back in the nation. As a result, he could most offset Warrior’s departure, and UT will need him to do just that.