Auburn football: Rematch with Tennessee gives the Tigers a perfect chance for revenge

After an awful start to the season, the Tennessee defense played much better in the team’s final six games. Much of that success on defense came from the Vols’ ability to rush the passer as they ranked third in the SEC with 34 sacks on the year.

Unfortunately, Tennessee also lost its top edge rusher in Darrell Taylor who was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the second round of the 2020 draft. Last season, Taylor led the team with 10 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks but, with that said, the Vols still have talent in the trenches.

In the interior, the Vols return RS sophomore nose tackle Greg Emerson who impressed as a freshman with 30 tackles and four TFLs. The Volunteers also have a solid senior duo at DT with Aubrey Solomon and Darel Middleton who stand at 6’5″, 315 and 6’7″, 305 respectively.

On the edge, the Vols have yet another pair of seniors with Matthew Butler and LaTrell Bumphus who combined for 68 tackles, nine TFLs and 4.5 sacks last season.

They may be missing their best D-lineman from last season but the Vols return a lot of talent here and are a veteran, experienced group that could give an inexperienced Auburn O-line some trouble.