Tennessee football: Five South Carolina Gamecocks to watch

6’1″ 245 pounds; Hometown: Atlanta, Ga.

Last year, Aaron Sterling had a solid performance against Tennessee football. Lining up opposite Wanya Morris, he came away with seven tackles, two of which were solo, and a tackle for a loss. However, he had plenty of better performances throughout the year, and Morris handled him pretty well for a true freshman playing left tackle.

This year, with Morris and Darnell Wright on the other side both returning as sophomores after having solid seasons starting as true freshman, the matchup becomes even more crucial. Sterling had 10 overall tackles for a loss last year and six sacks, and he’s looking to have a breakout All-American campaign as a senior in Will Muschamp’s system.

With questions about receiver for the Vols and Jarrett Guarantano’s tendency to wait to throw the ball, he could be vulnerable to Sterling’s play. As a result, the Vols have to keep an eye on him at all times, and that falls on Morris, Wright and even the interior linemen. Will Muschamp will have to sneak him around wherever he can.

One of the reasons Ernest Jones could spend time focusing on the intermediate attack is because Sterling can be the threat around the edge. That’s likely what will happen in this game, and it’s something all the Vol coaches are going to have to be aware of. Guarantano wasn’t sacked that often last year, but Sterling getting to him could make things much worse for everybody.