Tennessee football: Top five performers in Vols’ 48-45 OT loss to Purdue
Junior. Pick Analysis. Linebacker. Jeremy Banks. 4. player. 839. Scouting Report
20 tackles (10 solo); 2 PD; 2.5 TFL; 1 sack
Most of Tennessee football’s defense struggled. The pass rush was solid, and Byron Young could have made this list, especially with his interception and the fact that it forced two more interceptions. It also stopped the run well. Meanwhile, Kamal Hadden and Trevon Flowers both played hard in the secondary.
However, the defensive line was supposed to stop the run and get a rush given Purdue’s issues on the offensive line. Also, Flowers and Hadden got burned like the rest of the secondary too many times, even if they made up for it in some instances.
The one guy who played consistent throughout the night was Jeremy Banks. While Aaron Beasley struggled at linebacker, Banks was all over the field, making huge plays and doing everything he could to slow down Purdue’s attack. UT’s future is bright with him.
It was clear that UT would need to make sure Purdue was no threat in the running game to have a chance. Banks was a big part of that, and although everybody has done that to Purdue this year, Banks keeping them one dimensional is what allowed them to make key plays with their pass defense. As a result, despite the issues, Banks makes this list.