‘I think that tells you a lot about what Jim Knowles is going to do’ – There was a clue hidden in Tennessee’s updated roster
There was a clue hidden in the Tennessee Volunteers’ roster update that was released earlier this month that could reveal defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ plan for the 2026 season.
There’s been a lot of talk over the last couple of months about what the Tennessee Vols are going to do at the EDGE position with Penn State transfer Chaz Coleman no longer on the roster.
Tennessee doesn’t have a stable of prototypical SEC pass rushers on the roster, which means defensive coordinator Jim Knowles may have to be creative this fall.
And the Vols’ recent roster update may have provided a clue on how Knowles could apply that creativity.
Some of Tennessee’s defensive ends actually dropped weight this offseason
One of the biggest offseason talking points for the Vols has been the weight the team has added while working out under new strength coach Derek Owings.
Not every player, however, has added weight. Some players, in fact, have dropped weight — specifically a couple of defensive ends.
VolQuest’s Brent Hubbs joined WNML’s SportsTalk on Tuesday and explained why he thinks that’s the case.
“The thing that stood out a little bit to me as well is that some defensive ends dropped some weight,” said Hubbs. “Not a ton, but they dropped some pounds. And that was obviously by design. I think that tells you a lot about what Jim Knowles is going to do with those defensive ends. I think he’s going to play two big defensive ends a lot on the football field at the same time, and I think he wanted to try to maximize their speed and power, and have them drop a little bit of weight.
“You saw some guys drop three or four or five pounds at the defensive end position. Jordan Norman, the transfer from Tulane, being one of them. And I think that’s to try to maximize his ability off the edge, along with some other guys like Mariyon Dye and Tyree Weathersby as well.”
Jordan Norman went from 270 pounds to 265 pounds. Mariyon Dye went from 272 pounds to 270 pounds. Tyree Weathersby went from 272 pounds to 268 pounds. Freshman Breeze Carter went from 268 pounds to 255 pounds.
No one knows exactly what Knowles’ defense will look like in 2026 as this is his first season in Knoxville, but the updated roster seemingly gave us a hint at how he may approach rushing the passer this fall on Rocky Top.