Former Tennessee Vols EDGE Tyler Baron spent the first four seasons of his college career in Knoxville before transferring to Miami for his final season of eligibility.

Baron, a fifth round selection by the New York Jets in the 2025 NFL Draft, is entering his second season in the NFL.

The Tennessee native totaled 101 tackles and 13.5 sacks during his four seasons with the Volunteers.

Tyler Baron says he never wanted to leave Tennessee

Baron appeared on Rock Media’s Game Night this week and revealed that he never wanted to leave Tennessee.

“Going into my last year, I really had no intention of leaving Tennessee,” said Baron. “But with the landscape now, and just going to those meetings, it ended up like it wasn’t going to work out. So I was really sick. I never really want to leave. But, you know, s–t happens.”

Baron went on to say that his time with the Vols was a “dream come true” and that Tennessee is “home” for him.

“My experience at Tennessee, if you ask anybody, I’ll tell them it was a dream come true,” said Baron. “I graduated from Tennessee. That’s home for real.”

Baron had to make the move he felt was best for him after the 2023 season. In today’s college football, many of the transfer decisions are financially driven (on both sides, the player and the school). And that’s understandable — players have a short window to maximize their value in college (and every transfer decision is unique, often with factors the public isn’t aware of).

Ultimately, though, Baron considers himself a VFL at the end of the day despite spending his final college season elsewhere.