ESPN Reveals ‘Maybe the Best Defender’ In College Football This Year

The Tennessee Volunteers may have one of the best at putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks for the 2024 college football season.

ESPN's Bill Connelly tabbed edge rusher James Pearce Jr. as "maybe the best defender in the country" after finishing third in the SEC in sacks (9.5) as a sophomore in 2023. The former five-star recruit also added 27 stops (14.5 for loss), two forced fumbles and an interception returned for a touchdown last season.

Pearce was selected as First-Team All-SEC by both the AP and conference coaches for his efforts. Tennessee finished 32nd in the country in total defense and ended the season at 9-4 under third-year head coach Josh Heupel.

"The defense has played at a solid top-25 level for two straight years and boasts maybe the best defender in the country in James Pearce Jr," Connelly wrote .

Connelly included the Vols as one of six programs that are "most likely to rebound from a 2023 stumble." After going 11-2 in 2022 behind the arm of Hendon Hooker, Tennessee dropped games to Florida, Georgia, Missouri and Alabama with Joe Milton III under center.

There's considerable belief behind former five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava, a redshirt freshman entering his first season as a starter. But defense wins in the SEC and Pearce, who is projected to contend for a top-10 draft pick next spring, will be relied upon heavily to give the offense some breathing room in 2024.

The Vols will open the season at home against Chattanooga on Aug. 31. Kickoff is set for 12:45 p.m. ET.