On Thurdsay, four Tennessee football players were given Freshman All-SEC Team nods for the 2025 season. This included SEC Freshman of the Year wide receiver Braylon Staley, linebacker Edwin Spillman, cornerback Ty Redmond and offensive lineman David Sanders Jr.
Surprisingly, this list didn’t include versatile offensive lineman Jesse Perry. He started in all 12 games for the Vols this year across both right guard and right tackle, proving to be the glue that held the offensive line together in the face of Sanders’ early injury.
Perry was tasked with transforming his body once he got to Tennessee out of Middle Tennessee Christian School. He added more than 50 pounds of weight and would play in four games as a true freshman, being given a redshirt for the year.
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As a redshirt freshman, Perry started the 2025 season at right tackle with Sanders injured. He played every first-team snap at the position through the first four games, performing well in each. Sanders was cleared for the trip to Mississippi State, but Perry stayed in the right tackle role until suffering an injury to begin the game-tying drive at the end of regulation. Perry would return at right tackle for overtime in the win.
As Sanders began to work back to form, Perry began to slide back inside to right guard. By the trip to Kentucky, Sanders had fully taken over the job at right tackle, leading to Perry being pushed full-time into guard. In that role, he still had immense success.
By the end of the year, Perry had played 695 snaps across the two positions for a PFF grade of 66.4. As a pass blocker, he was given a 77.4 mark, as well. He also ended the season with a six-game streak of not being penalized.
