Byron Young Shouts Out Tennessee at NFL Combine

The projected mid-round selection in this year’s draft gave glowing remarks about Tennessee ahead of his testing at the combine.

Many players found themselves at the podium in Indianapolis on Wednesday before drills and testing begin on Thursday. When the stage belonged to Byron Young, the defensive lineman out of Tennessee gave some love to Rocky Top.

“When I look back, it went by fast. I learned a lot. I feel like I developed really well as a player. Definitely, Coach Garner–he helped me along the way, and he trusted me to be a captain on the team and a leader.”

Defensive line coach Rodney Garner just finished his second season in his second stint at Tennessee, returning after 24 years away from the program. Garner helped Tennessee defensive lineman Matthew Butler to become a fifth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. 

In the eight years before rejoining Tennessee, Garner had eight of his defensive lineman drafted at Auburn, his alma mater, including first-round pick Derrick Brown in 2020. Garner was at the University of Georgia before that, helping to produce five first-round picks on the defensive line in his fifteen seasons in Athens. 

Young transferred to Tennessee before his junior season, coming from Georgia Military College. In two years with the Vols, he totaled 12.5 sacks and 23.5 tackles-for-loss. He was named to the All-SEC First Team by the coaches in 2022. Young and other front-seven defenders will take the field at Lucas Oil Stadium on Thursday, with coverage starting at 3:00 p.m. on NFL Network. 

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