Tennessee Football: Ranking 10 Best Vols from 2014 Regular Season
It seems hard to believe that the Tennessee Volunteers' 2014 regular season has been over for more than two weeks.
Second-year head coach Butch Jones accomplished his goal of getting the Vols back into a bowl game, but it was his players stepping up in close SEC games that helped Tennessee reach the .500 mark for the first time since 2010.
The Vols' next goal is to win their postseason game—a TaxSlayer Bowl matchup in Jacksonville, Fla., against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Jan. 2.
The Hawkeyes finished the season with a disappointing 7-5 record after being picked as a potential Big 10 conference champion during the preseason.
Despite its lackluster finish, Iowa is a senior-laden, disciplined football team that rarely makes mistakes and executes all of its plays with precision.
For Tennessee to come away with its first winning season since 2009, it will have to rely on the same players it relied on all year to make big plays in all three phases of the game.
Here are the 10 players who carried the Vols throughout the regular season and who will play big roles in the matchup with the Hawkeyes at EverBank Field in just a few short weeks.
10. Todd Kelly Jr.
1 of 10
Todd Kelly Jr.'s toe-sliding interception with half of his body out of bounds against Vanderbilt was one of Tennessee's best plays of the year.
The freshman safety is quickly progressing to become a major star on the Vols defense and is living up to his billing as 247Sports' fifth-ranked safety in the 2014 class.
A 2014 Freshman All-SEC pick, Kelly had 21 solo tackles, one fumble recovery, two pass breakups and three interceptions on the season.
With a strong performance in the TaxSlayer Bowl, Kelly can push to lock down a starting position right out of the gate in 2015.
9. Justin Coleman
2 of 10
Senior defensive back Justin Coleman had a memorable final season as a Vol in 2014.
Two of his interceptions changed the momentum of very close games. His over-the-shoulder pick of Dylan Thompson in Tennessee's matchup against South Carolina kept the Gamecocks from pulling away from the Vols early in the game.
In addition, his diving interception against Vanderbilt stalled a promising Commodores drive and allowed Tennessee to flip field position.
Coleman led the Tennessee defense with four interceptions on the season to go along with four tackles for loss and 41 total tackles.
Although he may not possess elite speed, Coleman has great instincts for following the ball and will be missed in Tennessee's defensive backfield in 2015.
8. Aaron Medley
3 of 10
Freshman kicker Aaron Medley had a solid year for the Vols and essentially kicked the game-winning field goal against South Carolina—which just so happened to be the win that propelled Tennessee to win three of its last four games.
Medley hit 19 of his 26 field-goal tries and made all but one of his extra-point attempts on the season.
Although he's still working on his overall accuracy from long range, Medley was a reliable weapon for the Vols throughout 2014, and he added 93 points to the scoreboard during the course of the season.
Because the Hawkeyes tend to play low-scoring games, look for Medley to get even more in-game kicking opportunities on Jan. 2.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
7. Pig Howard
4 of 10
When Tennessee kicked off against Utah State to start the 2014 season, its wide receiver corps appeared to be loaded with depth and talent.
But with the final game of the season quickly approaching, Tennessee's deepest position is now dangerously thin with season-ending injuries to Josh Smith, Marquez North and Jason Croom.
One constant all year, however, was Pig Howard.
Howard averaged a career-high 11.3 yards per catch and 49.1 yards per game in 2014. He also hauled in 52 catches and was instrumental in Tennessee's comeback victory against South Carolina on Nov. 1.
With so many wide receivers out for the bowl game, Howard will get plenty of touches to prepare him for his last year as a Vol in 2015.
6. Cameron Sutton
5 of 10
Although sophomore Cameron Sutton didn't have the All-American season some expected him to have in 2014, his play was still stellar and on par with his excellent freshman season.
Despite having four fewer tackles this season than he had in 2013, Sutton made up for it by adding a forced fumble, four additional passes broken up and an extra interception over last season's production.
He also returned a punt for a touchdown against Vanderbilt—a score that very well may have been the one that secured Tennessee's bowl eligibility.
Despite being just a true sophomore, Sutton may have only one more season as a Vol, as the NFL will likely come calling after his 2015 season.
5. A.J. Johnson
6 of 10
A.J. Johnson is suspended from the team pending the results of a sexual assault investigation, but his play through 10 games was nothing short of excellent.
Johnson returned to Tennessee for his senior season to improve his draft stock and help the Vols make a bowl game. While the latter is already achieved, the former is still up in the air depending on whether he's indicted on charges stemming from a late-night party after Tennessee beat Kentucky on Nov. 15.
His 58 solo tackles through 10 games put him on pace to easily beat his record of 63 through 12 games in 2012 had he finished the regular season. Johnson also added an interception—a career first—and two sacks to make his 2014 season a successful one.
The Vols missed Johnson's presence in games against Missouri and Vanderbilt, and his absence won't be easy to replace against the Hawkeyes either.
However, provided he's cleared of any wrongdoing in the coming weeks, Johnson should safely be a lock to get picked up in the 2015 NFL draft based on his play this season.
4. Jalen Hurd
7 of 10
When he arrived on campus in Jan. 2014, freshman Jalen Hurd was the most hyped homegrown running back for the Vols since Gerald Riggs Jr. committed to Philip Fulmer's staff in 2002.
Hurd struggled at times running behind what was statistically one of the worst offensive lines in the nation, but he managed to grind out 777 net yards on the ground despite missing significant action against Chattanooga and Vanderbilt.
In addition to being utilized heavily in the running game, Hurd also added a threat in the passing game with his ability to generate big chunks of yardage on screen passes.
When Hurd left the game with an upper-body injury against Vanderbilt, Tennessee's offense struggled to move the chains. Not only can Hurd pick up tough yards like no other running back on the Vols' roster, but he's also an effective blocker for Joshua Dobbs.
Tennessee's offensive game plan for the Hawkeyes will almost certainly revolve around Hurd and his ability to push through the line of scrimmage and gain four or five yards on plays that look dead in the water.
3. Curt Maggitt
8 of 10
Curt Maggitt, fresh off a redshirt season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament suffered in Nov. 2012, seemed to get better in every game as the 2014 season progressed.
While he started out the year looking somewhat tentative and rusty, he ended it with a bang, notching eight sacks in the final five games of the season to put his total for the year at 11.
Maggitt's sack in the first overtime against South Carolina on Nov. 1 was instrumental in forcing the Gamecocks to attempt a failed 57-yard field-goal attempt, and his constant pressure on Vanderbilt quarterbacks Johnny McCrary and Patton Robinette kept the Commodores offense in check in Tennessee's final regular-season game.
With Maggitt peaking at just the right time, look for him to have a big game against Iowa's vaunted offensive line in the TaxSlayer Bowl.
2. Joshua Dobbs
9 of 10
While there's plenty to debate about whether Joshua Dobbs should have started at quarterback for Tennessee from day one this year, it's hard to argue that his ability to take off and run when the pocket breaks down is the biggest reason why Tennessee is going bowling.
Dobbs' 14 total touchdowns for the season through five games put him just short of Justin Worley's 15 total touchdowns, despite Worley playing in seven total games—including FCS opponent Chattanooga.
Missouri managed to keep Dobbs from going off like he did against South Carolina and Kentucky, but he still made plays when they mattered, as he nearly led Tennessee to another miracle comeback against the Tigers.
His play against Vanderbilt was decidedly sloppy, but his two touchdowns on the ground—as well two clutch throws across the field when the pocket broke down—kept Tennessee's offense alive and capable of putting points on the board despite a surprisingly stout defensive performance by the Commodores.
All eyes will once again be on Dobbs when Tennessee takes on Iowa in a few weeks, and once again it may be up to him to put the Vols offense on his back and carry the team to victory.
1. Derek Barnett
10 of 10
Derek Barnett is Tennessee's most decorated freshman in years.
A quick glance at his official profile on UTSports.com shows some of the accolades he picked up for his stellar play in 2014: ESPN Freshman All-American, All-SEC Associated Press Second Team, All-SEC Coaches Second Team and 247Sports Freshman All-American, just to name a few.
That's what happens when you generate 69 total tackles, 10 sacks and 20.5 tackles for loss as a true freshman playing against grown men who are 22 and 23 years old.
Barnett was easily Tennessee's best overall player in 2014 and has the potential to be the Vols' best defensive player since Eric Berry and their best defensive lineman since Reggie White.
There may be some money on the line for the Hawkeyes' All-American tackle and soon-to-be first-round NFL draft pick Brandon Scherff when he squares off against Barnett on Jan. 2.
Scherff may be the best offensive lineman in the nation, and there's no better way for Barnett to end his first collegiate season than to test his skills against a player who is essentially an NFL lineman in a college uniform.
With a strong performance against the veteran Scherff, Barnett has the chance to not only help his team secure a winning season, but he could also see his own name skyrocket to the first round of 2016 draft boards across the country.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
