PHILADELPHIA — The Maxwell Football Club (MFC) announced Thursday that Tennessee sophomore defensive lineman James Pearce Jr. was added to the Chuck Bednarik Award Watch List after a stellar opening half to the 2023 football season.
The Bednarik Award is presented annually to the most outstanding defensive player in college football. Players named to the watch list were selected by the MFC national selection committee and will be eligible for consideration as semifinalists for the award. Semifinalists will be announced on Monday, Nov. 13, and voting will commence on Nov. 14.
Pearce has been one of UT’s most disruptive defenders this season, leading the Vols with six sacks, nine tackles for loss and 11 quarterback hurries through the first six games of his sophomore campaign. The Charlotte, North Carolina, native is the SEC’s highest graded edge rusher this season according to PFF College with a rating of 91.3. His 1.0 sacks per game and 1.5 TFLs per game ranks first and second in the league, respectively.
A two-time SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week, Pearce has posted multiple TFLs in four games this season which includes all three SEC contests. In UT’s latest dominant defensive effort against Texas A&M, he finished the game with three tackles, two TFLs, one sack and a career-best five QB hurries.
As a team, the Vols rank second in the SEC and third in the FBS in sacks (4.0) and tackles for loss (8.7) per game. Tennessee’s 17.0 points allowed per game ranks third in the conference and 18th nationally.
The No. 17/15 Vols hit the road this weekend for The Third Saturday In October, taking on No. 11/8 Alabama in Bryant-Denny Stadium. The 106th meeting between the cross division rivals will kick off Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.