Now that Chaz Coleman is officially gone, the Vols have a tough spot on their hands when it comes to their edge rushers, and someone is going to have to step up.
Before getting into that, let's back track a bit. Tennessee lost a number of its most productive pass rushers to graduation, including Dominic Bailey and Joshua Josephs, while Caleb Herring and Jordan Ross both entered the Transfer Portal. Tennessee put almost all its eggs in the Chaz Coleman basket, however, the cupboards aren't completely bare.
Blue-chip 2027 safety gives Josh Heupel another major recruiting win
Tennessee has a lot of ground to make up when it comes to applying pressure on the quarterback, but the good news is they do have a Chaz Coleman replacement who is more than suitable. The Vols picked up Jordan Norman, an edge rusher who helped lead Tulane to the College Football Playoff last fall. Norman posted 28 tackles last season with eight TFLs and six sacks. With Coleman now out of the picture, Norman is expected to be the guy to step up and provide a consistent pass rush off the edge for Tennessee.
EDGE Jordan Norman needs a big fall
Even before the news about Coleman, Jordan Norman was expected to have a significant role. That hasn’t changed with Coleman’s departure, but his availability and production now become even more important for Tennessee moving forward.
Norman was rated very highly by PFF last fall for his pass-rushing production. Along with his sack numbers, he added 15 hurries and three quarterback hits. Norman won 13.3% of his pass-rush attempts and earned a 73.4 pass-rush grade. Tennessee is going to need that from him next fall. While he is by no means perfect, Norman has a lot of good tools to work with.
Behind Norman, Tennessee doesn’t have much proven depth at LEO, and someone will need to step up. Christian Gass was a big-time 2025 high school prospect that Tennessee beat out several major programs for. Last season as a true freshman, he recorded a tackle against UAB. Gass could be one of the players who steps up this fall.
The good news, however, is that Tennessee does have one of the best defensive line coaches in the nation. After Jim Knowles was hired, he said:
“Rodney Garner’s a legend, so I’m going to start right there. He’s really a legend when it comes to coaching D-line, an SEC legend. I think he’s extremely well-known, and when you watch him, he coaches his players very hard, but he loves them right after that. That’s a unique combination. That’s how I like to be. Challenge them, work them hard, but make sure they know that you care about them. He’s all about that.
Ultimately, the defensive line needs to have an identity up front for Tennessee to be successful next fall. With Coleman gone, that makes things tougher for the Vols, but they aren’t hopeless. Maybe Coleman leaving could end up being a blessing in disguise.
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