James Pearce Jr.: DL · Tennessee · #27.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
James Pearce Jr.
Disrupts the pocket from the interior. Third year in the Tennessee defensive front. Named All-SEC two seasons running, most recently in 2024. A game that shows it: 9 tackles and 2 tackles for loss against Arkansas — Week 6, 2024.
Play style
Disruptive interior rusher who lives in the backfield.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
38 tackles. 1 pass defended. 0 interceptions. 13 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
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Game log · Week-by-week
2024 season · 12 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 | W 51-10vs No. 24 NC State | 1 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 71-0vs Kent State | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 25-15@ No. 15 Oklahoma | 2 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 14-19@ Arkansas | 9 | 5 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 1 | Season-high 9 tackles |
| Wk 7 | W 23-17vs Florida | 7 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 24-17vs No. 7 Alabama | 3 | 2 | 1.5 | 1.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 28-18vs Kentucky | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 33-14vs Mississippi State | 4 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | L 17-31@ No. 11 Georgia | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | W 56-0vs UTEP | 4 | 3 | 2.5 | 2.0 | — | 0 | 2 sacks |
| Wk 14 | W 36-23@ Vanderbilt | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Bowl | L 17-42@ No. 6 Ohio State | 3 | 3 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 38 | 23 | 13.0 | 7.5 | — | 1 |
Week 8 · 2024
W 24-17
vs Alabama
1.5 sacks · 1.5 tackles for loss · 3 tackles
A close one, won by 7 at home.
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
TFL rate
34%13 TFLSack rate
20%8 sacksHurry rate
26%10 hurries38 tackles · 13 for loss · 7.5 sacks.
3 seasons under Josh Heupel — 30-9 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2024 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 3.2 | 1.2 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| Road5g | 3.6 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 3.7 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 2.7 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Josh Heupel
Pass share
39.3%
373 pass / 576 run
Plays / game
73.0
13 games
Team sack rate
7.0%
412 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Player standing · 2024
First team in his league at the position.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Former four-star. Now #36 at the position.
How it ended
Three seasons at Tennessee, 19 sacks, a first-team All-Conference season (2023) — drafted at #26 overall by the Atlanta Falcons.
A blue-chip recruit with honors.
The role got bigger.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-SEC · 1ST TEAM
All-SEC 1st team (2024)
Coaching lineage · 2022–2024
1 coachPlayed every college season under Josh Heupel.
Next stop · NFL
Atlanta FalconsEntering 2nd NFL season
Atlanta FalconsEntering 2nd NFL season
