Mayo ready to be part of tradition

Mayo

Type the phrase "Linebacker U" into Google, and you'll find thousands of articles and Web sites extolling Penn State as the preeminent school for linebackers.

Type that same phrase into Wikipedia, and Penn State's football page immediately appears on your computer screen via the Internet's version of Encyclopedia Britannica.

Come this weekend, though, that entry might need a little editing.

When Tennessee linebacker Jerod Mayo becomes the first Vol taken in Saturday's NFL draft (ESPN, 3 p.m.), he'll be the 11th Tennessee linebacker selected since 1999.

If he goes in the first round as many project, he'll join Al Wilson as the second UT linebacker taken in the first 32 picks.

When Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis began coaching linebackers at Tennessee in 1989, one of his goals was to produce enough quality linebackers that UT might be known once again as the place where players came to get their PhD in tackling.

That dream came from Chavis' two years playing under Lon Herzbrun, who coached four Tennessee linebackers to a total of five All-America honors 1969-76.

"You look at that wall in the complex and see the number of All-Americans he coached at Tennessee," Chavis says. "Back then, Tennessee was known as Linebacker U. When I had the opportunity to coach linebackers here at Tennessee, one of my goals was to put Tennessee back in a position where it was known as Linebacker U. I think we've made some progress."

Chavis isn't ready to take away Penn State's title, but the numbers make a pretty strong case.

Since 1999, Tennessee has had more linebackers selected in the NFL draft than any of the 10 schools with the most players picked since 1996. Penn State, meanwhile, has produced five. Only Miami (4), Ohio State (3) and Florida State (2) have produced more first-rounders over the same period.

That history wasn't lost on Mayo when he signed with Tennessee in 2004.

"It pulled a lot of weight," Mayo said. "Coming out of high school, it's everyone's dream to play in the NFL. I was like, 'Well, shoot, I can go to this school, get a good education, play in a great atmosphere and have a great coach and hopefully at the end of the day, I'll have a chance in the NFL.'

"I like those odds."

They got better since Mayo arrived.

In the last three years, four Tennessee linebackers have been drafted, and only once since 1999 has a draft come and gone without a UT linebacker among the 255 players selected each year.

"You're seeing the recruiting lines, the coaching experience, the level of competition," says Frank Coyle, a pro scout who also has0 published the NFL Draft Insiders Guide each of the last 17 years. "You wind up with a kid who's very athletic with a high level of skill from a highly competitive conference. You add it all up, and they're ready for the NFL."

That's certainly the case with Mayo, who earned All-SEC honors last season and elected to leave following a junior season in which he led UT with 140 tackles, including 8.5 for losses.

Chavis saw the talent - as did several other Division I schools - when Mayo was a recruit in Hampton, Va. But for Mayo and the others who have come out of Tennessee's linebacker pipeline, talent wasn't the only thing that propelled him to the NFL's doorstep. "The thing that really convinced me that he was going to be a great player was after he got here, he wanted to know every day what he could improve on," Chavis said. "When you gave him those things, the next day you saw him out there working on them."

And that's whether the Vols practiced or not.

If a linebacker is going to play on Saturday, Chavis says, that means he must put in five days of good work during the week.

Mayo extended that to everyday, whether or not it was football season.

"I never went home, that's why I graduated early," said Mayo, who graduated in December. "I was always in the film room, always in the weight room, always trying to get that competitive edge."

A lot of that work ethic Mayo inherited from his mother. And a lot of it was passed down from Chavis and older players.

When Mayo arrived, he redshirted a year behind Kevin Burnett. When Burnett was a freshman, Eric Westmoreland, Raynoch Thompson and Al Wilson were the gold standards at linebacker.

And Westmoreland, a third-round NFL pick, says tradition can't be overstated when it comes to Tennessee's track record for producing linebackers.

"You watch the guys in front of you, and when it's your turn, you don't miss a beat," says Westmoreland, a coach at Chattanooga's Baylor School. "It's like a trickle effect. You see the type of players they can be. All of the guys have the same attributes."

Those attributes are usually speed and athleticism, and Mayo is no exception.

Chavis is the first to acknowledge the role that recruiting plays in UT's run of talented linebackers. But Chavis has a big role in that, too. His track record is no doubt one of the reasons why the Atlanta Falcons approached Chavis in the offseason about becoming their linebackers coach.

"The toughness is what he brings out of you," Westmoreland said. "His fire and enthusiasm spills out on the field."

Said Mayo: "He's always trying to help a player grow to become the player he thinks they can be. I thank God each and every day for blessing me with the talent, and I thank God for putting Coach Chavis in my life to help me grow up as a player on the field and as a man."

On Saturday, Mayo will be another entry into Tennessee's ledger of linebackers who earned a shot in the NFL.

Mayo also added to another tradition: All but two linebackers who spent four seasons at UT ended up with a degree.

It's all one more step toward becoming Linebacker U.

"Pretty much," Mayo says, "his track record speaks for itself."

Drew Edwards covers University of Tennessee football. He may be reached at 865-342-6274.