2. John H. Ford II
Linebacker | Senior (GR) | 6’3″ 230 pounds
Yes, defense is getting more players on here than UT-Martin’s high-powered offense. That’s because while the Skyhawks have more weapons on offense, which we’ll get to, it’s driven by just a couple of players at the root. Jason Simpson uses the defense, meanwhile, to generate big plays where it can.
From the defensive line to the secondary, John Ford II does that for the Skyhawks at linebacker. Ford’s 62 tackles leads the team, although his 22 solo tackles are second by one to Rob Hicks. He’s also second on the team with three and a half sacks and leads the team in tackles for a loss with six.
Add in an interception, pass breakup and two hurries, and Ford truly does it all. If Tennessee football is going to do what it needs to do offensively to make sure it puts this game away early, it’ll have to handle Ford. The Vols have managed elite linebackers all year, so it’s hard to see them not doing it at this level.
However, UT-Martin is coming off a bye week, and that combined with a potential lack of focus from UT could result in guys like Ford unusually stepping up. Josh Heupel still relies on the run game to get things going, and that won’t change Saturday, so watch out for Ford.