Tennessee football will be without its top defensive lineman in the Music City Bowl against Illinois. Outside linebacker Josh Josephs is opting out of the bowl game to begin his preparation for the NFL Draft, Volquest first reported on Friday morning.
Josephs was Tennessee’s starting LEO and one of its top overall players during the 2025 season. The senior edge rusher totaled 33 tackles, four sacks, three forced fumbles and two pass breakups. As Tennessee’s best pass rusher, Josephs totaled 30 quarterback pressures. His 87.1 PFF grade was the highest on the Vols’ defense during the 2025 season.
What will Tennessee’s outside linebacker (LEO) room look like against Illinois in the Music City Bowl?
One of Caleb Herring or Jordan Ross will step up into the starting role. The two played major snaps every game they were healthy this season.
Herring played 319 snaps during his junior season, totaling 14 tackles, four sacks and two pass breakups. Ross played 216 snaps, totaling 17 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two pass breakups and one forced fumble. Herring was the better pass rusher of the two but the sophomore Ross was a more consistent every down player.
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Behind Herring and Ross, it’s unclear who is next up on Tennessee’s depth chart. No other Tennessee LEO played more than 15 snaps during the regular season. Emmanuel Okoye led the way with 15 snaps following by Christian Gass with 12 snaps and Jayden Loftin with three snaps.
Freshman Mariyon Dye, who was Tennessee’s third string defensive end this season, could also potentially slide over to LEO for a lone game.
The Music City Bowl could provide an early look at what Tennessee’s outside linebacker rotation will look like next season if the Vols return both Ross and Herring. Tennessee could also look to add an edge rusher in then transfer portal next month.
Tennessee football is currently 2.5-point favorites against Illinois in the Music City Bowl according to the DK Sportsbook. The over/under is set at 61.5. The Vols are 1-2 all time in the Music City Bowl with losses against North Carolina (2010) and Purdue (2021) as well as a win over Nebraska (2016).
Kickoff between Tennessee and Illinois is at 5:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 30. Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers and Cole Cubelic are on the call for ESPN.
