KNOXVILLE – The stat line isn’t likely to get Joseph Ayres any votes for SEC defensive player of the week. Tennessee’s redshirt freshman defensive tackle from McCallie School officially earned one tackle assist for his lengthy afternoon of work in Saturday’s 31-17 loss to Florida.
But that didn’t mean UT coach Derek Dooley wasn’t proud of Ayres, even if he refused to make him available to the media after the game.
“He’s a good walk-on,” Dooley said. “He’s out there playing against the Gators. He’s been practicing better than some of the other guys.”
Big Orange teammates such as linebacker Austin Johnson will tell you that Ayres is “extremely intelligent. And he works hard. It was great to have him come in today and give us some support.
Senior linebacker Nick Reveiz goes further: “Joe’s one of those guys, he’s a scrapper. Every play he’s out there he gives you everything he’s got. We really need that, and he gave us that today.”
Added Montori Hughes, whose arm injury necessitated extended spot duty from Ayres: “He’s got a lot of fight in him. He may have surprised some people out there today, but not me. He’s a hard, hard worker.
Ayres certainly worked hard against the Gators. Despite carrying a mere 262 pounds on his 6-foot-3 frame, the Knoxville native repeatedly helped jam up a Florida offensive line that averaged 324 pounds among its starting center, guards and tackles.
The result was just 16 Florida rushing yards in the opening half and 150 for the game.
It was enough to have McCallie football coach Rick Whitt jumping out of his seat back home in Chattanooga.
“I think it’s pretty awesome to see him on the field,” he told the Times Free Press. “He had an awfully good career here, and it’s nice to see all his hard work and perseverance pay off. I know he’s worked really hard in the weightroom to get bigger and stronger.”
And when someone is big enough and strong enough to play against the Gators, that player is good enough to play against anyone in college football.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com at 423-757-6273.