Tennessee's James Pearce tops On3's ranking of the top 100 players in college football
Tennessee Football’s James Pearce is the No. 1 player in college football entering the 2024 season, according to a ranking of the top 100 players from On3’s Clark Brooks. Pearce was the only Tennessee player on the list, which celebrated 100 days until the new season kicks off.
“James Pearce is simply a defender who you need to know where he aligns on any given snap,” Brooks wrote of Tennessee’s rising junior pass rusher. “He launches like a rocket and has great B-gap rip/swim counters to keep tackles stressing … no returning defender is better at snatching impact plays (17.1%).”
Pearce was a breakout star as a sophomore last season, leading Tennessee’s defense with 10.0 sacks, 14.5 tackles for loss and had 16 quarterback hits. He played 462 snaps in 13 games, with 246 pass-rushing snaps and 182 snaps in run defense.
James Pearce given 7/1 odds to be No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft
Pearce was projected to be a top-five pick in ESPN’s first mock draft for the 2025 NFL Draft.
“Pearce has a rare combination of bend and closing speed,” ESPN NFL Draft analyst Jordan Reid wrote. “He’s a scheme-versatile defender who had a 20.2% pressure rate (third in the FBS), 10 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss last season, and he was especially great on third down (25.5% pressure). The Panthers need an explosive edge rusher after trading Brian Burns to the Giants this offseason.”
Pearce two weeks ago was given 7/1 odds by BetOnline to be the No. 1 pick by BetOnline, behind only Colorado quarterback Shadeur Sanders (5/2), Beck (4/1) and Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers (5/1).
Pro Football Focus ranked Pearce No. 1 on its “Way-Too-Early Top-50 Big Board” for the 2025 NFL Draft.
“Pearce was one of the most fearsome pass-rushers in the country as a sophomore,” PFF’s Max Chadwick wrote. “His 92.4 PFF pass-rushing grade and 21.3% pressure rate ranking third among FBS edge defenders.
“The scary part about those numbers is that he was winning almost exclusively off his athleticism last year, meaning he can become nearly unblockable with some added pass-rushing moves.”
ESPN: ‘His speed and savvy pass-rush moves are worthy of the hype’
PFF in April, before the 2024 NFL Draft started, released a mock draft that included every player in college football. Pearce was the No. 8 overall pick to the Atlanta Falcons in that hypothetical and was the first player from the 2025 draft class to show up in the PFF mock draft.
ESPN NFL Draft analyst Matt Miller also wrote in January that Pearce could have potentially been the first defensive player selected in this year’s NFL Draft.
“An AFC West scout who covers the conference told me Pearce would be the first defensive player drafted in the 2024 class if he were draft-eligible,” Miller wrote for ESPN in January. Expectations are high for Pearce, but his speed and savvy pass-rush moves are worthy of the hype.”
