Tennessee football: Matthew Butler, Alontae Taylor, Velus Jones Jr. stand out in senior all-star games

This past week saw five former Tennessee football players participate in multiple senior all-star games. Matthew Butler and Theo Jackson took place in the East West Shrine Bowl. Alontae Taylor, Cade Mays and Velus Jones Jr. took part in the Reese’s Senior Bowl.

Butler and Jackson helped the West secure a 25-24 victory over the East on Thursday. Jones, Taylor and Mays represented the American Team in the Senior Bowl, which lost to the National Team 20-10 on Saturday. Still, multiple Vols stood out in that one.

Of the five former Tennessee football players taking part in the senior games, Butler, Jones and Taylor benefitted in a huge way. For Butler, it was what he did during the week leading up to the games, and for Jones and Taylor, it was what they did in their games.

Jordan Reid of ESPN named Butler one of the 15 rising prospects during the bowl practices. Apparently, the 6’4″ 295-pound defensive lineman stood out for his size, but his ability to win one-on-one drills and get to the quarterback really stood out. Here’s a bit of what Reid said.

"Overall, I thought Butler was the best player at the event, and he proved his worth during each period of practice. Playing in 53 career games for the Volunteers, he hit his stride during his final season as he had 47 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and five sacks."

He is still projected as a Day 3 prospect, but the performances Butler enjoyed during these practices likely assured that he will at least be drafted. Jackson was a late invitee to the Shrine Bowl, so it was going to be harder for him to make a case anyway.

Moving onto the Senior Bowl, Jones led the American team in receiving. The 6’0″ 200-pound wide receiver and return specialist had four catches for 53 yards, including this epic 32-yard catch from Western Kentucky Hilltoppers quarterback Bailey Zappe in the third quarter to set up a field goal.

Ironically, Zappe’s head coach, Tyson Helton, was UT’s offensive coordinator in 2018, Jeremy Pruitt’s first year, and he was Jones’ passing game coordinator when both were with the USC Trojans in 2016 and 2017. Jones wasn’t effective in the return game, but his play in the passing game could help him a lot.

Above all players, though, Taylor stood out among former Tennessee football stars. He made the right decision sitting out the Music City Bowl to focus on the NFL Draft, and based on what he did this past weekend, his draft stock, may be rising.

Taylor is the one guy who stood out during the week leading up to the game and in the actual game itself. In the week leading up to it, the 6’0″ 195-pound cornerback reportedly clocked in the fastest field speed, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Jim Nagy reported on Twitter.

In the game, Taylor also managed to stand out. He was the one player on the American team to come away with an interception, picking off Nevada Wolf Pack quarterback Carson Strong at the American 40-yard line. Like Jones, Taylor’s big play came in the third quarter.

Taking all this into account, Josh Heupel is going to miss some weapons next year. He clearly missed Taylor in the Music City Bowl as it was, but Butler and Jones are also crucial. This offseason will involve a tough process trying to offset these departures.

However, based on what they did, they should be able to represent Tennessee football in a big way at the next level. Mays and Jackson still bring some questions, but it seems as if the Vols will at least have two players selected, and they should have three.