Tennessee football: Five Vols to watch for vs. South Carolina

6’2″ 203 pounds; Hometown: Nashville, Tenn.

Although South Carolina has only thrown two interceptions on the year, they have allowed 12 sacks, and two of them have been to defensive backs. The combination of picks and sacks could lend itself to multiple defensive backs being on this list. Jaylen McCollough has two interceptions, three pass deflections and two tackles for a loss on the year himself.

Cornerbacks also could have made it. Alontae Taylor has racked up hardly any stats except for one interception, but that’s because of how he’s able to shut down part of the field, which is another key to South Carolina being unable to move the ball. Kenneth George Jr. was Tennessee football’s highest graded player by PFF last week. Either of those guys could have been on here.

However, there’s no doubt that Theo Jackson has been the most consistent player and playmaker in the secondary throughout the year. Jackson was the second-highest graded defensive back on Saturday at Mizzou. He had a pass deflection and five tackles, four of which were solo.

For the year, Jackson leads the team in total tackles with 37, solo tackles with 18, tackles for a loss with six and a half and pass deflections with five. He also has one and a half sacks, good for second on the team. Simply put, he’s the playmaker at nickel, and he’ll be key Saturday.