Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter confirms what we suspected about his role with the Vols in 2026
Tennessee Volunteers linebacker Arion Carter will be back on Rocky Top in 2026, and his role will look a little different.
There’s been speculation this offseason that Tennessee Vols linebacker Arion Carter could be used off the edge some this fall.
There are two reasons for the speculation: the Vols don’t have a lot of proven options at EDGE, and the team has an extremely deep linebacker room.
“I think Tennessee and how they play the defense with no Chaz Coleman and the lack of real depth at Leo, it probably makes some sense to give some different looks,” said VolQuest’s Austin Price earlier this month on WNML’s Josh and Swain. “I think more 4-3 looks could be in the works. I think you could use guys like Arion Carter even off the edge to rush the passer — Arion’s very athletic.”
Carter was asked at SEC Media Days by AtoZ Sports’ Rob Gregson about his role in Jim Knowles’ defense in 2026, and he acknowledged that we’ll see him come off the EDGE at times.
“Coach Knowles is a defensive genius and he knows how to put his players in the best position to go win,” said Carter. “So, you will see me a little bit on the edge this year. You’ll see me a little bit up in the middle on the line of scrimmage in some exotic blitz packages and stuff like that. But at the end of the day, you have to be able to understand and trust your coach to put you in the best position to go win, and that’s simply what I’m doing.”
Vols fans are certainly going to see a lot of new defensive looks this fall with Knowles now serving as the program’s defensive coordinator.