Tennessee football’s defense is going to have a strong flair of Penn State talent next year. With the hiring of Jim Knowles as the team’s new defensive coordinator, four former Nittany Lions are following him to Knoxville.
The four incoming pieces include LEO Chaz Coleman, safety Dejuan Lane, linebacker Amare Campbell and defensive tackle Xavier Gilliam.
This quartert make up four of the nine incoming transfers to this point. This includes safety Qua Moss from Kansas State, offensive tackle Ory Williams from LSU, cornerback Kayin Lee from Auburn, kicker Cooper Ranvier from Louisville and specialist Blake Howard from EKU.
How good are those four PSU players, though? Penn State had a year bad enough that it saw head coach James Franklin get fired this past season. So are the Vols getting second-hand players from PSU that didn’t cut it there, or are the next Tennessee defensive stars coming from Happy Valley?
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Here’s a look at both traditional stats and PFF numbers of what the four additions did in the 2025 season.
LEO – Chaz Coleman
2025 stats:
- 9 games
- 8 tackles
- 3 TFL
- 1 sack
- 1 forced fumble
- 2 forced fumble
- 1 PBU
PFF grades:
- 81.1 overall
- 59.0 run defense
- 44.9 tackling
- 90.3 pass rush
- 69.9 coverage
About:
- Height: 6-4
- Weight: 220
- Class (2026): Sophomore
- Hometown: Warren, Ohio
S – Dejuan Lane
2025 stats:
- 13 games
- 30 tackles
- 2.5 tackles for loss
- 1 sack
- 1 PBU
PFF grades:
- 71.0 overall
- 68.9 run defense
- 77.8 tackling
- 77.2 pass rush
- 70.3 coverage
About:
- Height: 6-2
- Weight: 205
- Class (2026): Junior
- Hometown: Jessup, Md.
LB – Amare Campbell
2025 stats:
- 13 games
- 103 tackles
- 9.5 tackles for loss
- 3 sacks
- 1 fumble recovery
- 1 PBU
PFF grades:
- 70.8 overall
- 81.7 run defense
- 65.3 tackling
- 67.3 pass rushing
- 53.5 coverage
About:
- Height: 6-0
- Weight: 230
- Class (2026): Senior
- Hometown: Manassas, Va.
DT – Xavier Gilliam
2025 stats:
- 13 games
- 15 tackles
- 2 tackles for loss
- 0.5 sacks
PFF grades:
- 62.0 overall
- 52.2 run defense
- 53.7 tackling
- 63.4 pass rushing
- 85.1 coverage
About:
- Height: 6-2
- Weight: 302
- Class (2026): R-Sophomore
- Hometown: Montgomery Village, Md.
