Tennessee
Former Tennessee football DL Omarr Norman-Lott used to have a fitting job
Omarr Norman-Lott’s job title is NFL football player.
The former Tennessee football defensive lineman can now say that after being picked by the Chiefs in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Before his professional football career, or even his time with the Vols, Norman-Lott had a different job, though.
Fittingly, at 6-foot-3 and 315 pounds, he was a bouncer.
TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM
When Norman-Lott was asked about this experience in his post-draft interview, he instantly started smiling and laughing. He recognized how much he enjoyed the job, but also said it wasn’t something that could last.
“That was a good experience, man, early in college,” Norman-Lott said. “It wasn’t a lifestyle that was conducive to me making it to where I am today, so I had to make a change.”
Ultimately, Norman-Lott said it taught him life lessons. The first is how he handles high-tension situations.
In the heat of competition in the SEC and now NFL, this can certainly come in handy.
“That experience within itself was amazing,” Norman-Lott said. “It taught me a lot in how to handle situations and deescalate first in all situations and stuff like that.”
Norman-Lott wasn’t a bouncer in Knoxville. Instead, he held the job while he was at Arizona State. He spent 2020-22 with the Sun Devils before transferring to Tennessee.
During that time, despite his teams going 2-2, 8-5 and 3-9, he played with some serious talent. This included Jayden Daniels who went on to win the Heisman Trophy at LSU and become a star in the NFL.
The pair were teammates in Norman-Lott’s first two seasons at Arizona State.
He also played with Johnny Wilson during those first two years. Wilson, a defensive back, transferred to Flordia State to round out his career and is a Super Bowl champion with the Eagles.
“That era in time was amazing,” Norman-Lott said. “That was the time where I played with Jayden Daniels, Johnny Wilson, we had a bunch of boys and stuff like that there.”
Tracking the opt outs for both Tennessee and Illinois before the Music City Bowl on December 30 (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN) at Nissan Stadium in Nashville:
Tennessee
Linebacker Arion Carter: Carter over the last seasons had 96 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in 31 career games. He had a team-high 76 tackles this season, with 6.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks while appearing in 10 games. He missed two games and was limited against Oklahoma in November while dealing with turf toe injuries. Carter had 68 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss in 13 games last season and 17 tackles and 1.0 tackles for loss in eight games as a freshman in 2023.
Wide Receiver Chris Brazzell II: He a breakout senior season in his second year with the Vols, catching 62 passes for 1,017 yards and nine touchdowns. He had 19 catches for 333 yards and two touchdowns in 2024, after transferring from Tulane. In 15 games at Tulane he caught 45 passes for 722 yards and five touchdowns. Brazzell is ranked No. 7 at wide receiver on Mel Kiper Jr.’s NFL Draft Big Board. He’s ranked No. 34 overall on ESPN’s list of the best available prospects in the draft.
Cornerback Jermod McCoy: Did not play this season after tearing his ACL during offseason training in January. He was a star last season with 44 tackles, nine passes defended and four interceptions. He had 31 tackles and two interceptions in 12 games as a freshman at Oregon State before transferring to Tennessee.
Illinois
Offensive Tackle J.C. Davis: Bret Bielema said the Illinois starting left tackle is opting out of the Music City Bowl. He was an All-Big Ten First Team pick by the league coaches this season and the No. 3 left tackle this season according to Pro Football Focus grades. He had made 49 straight starts before opting out of the bowl game.
EDGE Gabe Jacas: The Illinois outside linebacker declared for the NFL Draft on Friday night. He led the Big Ten this season with 11.0 sacks. He had 13.5 tackles for loss and 43 total tackles in 12 games this season. He finishes second in Illinois program history for career sacks, with 27.0, trailing only Simeon Rice. Jacas had 74 tackles, 8.0 sacks and 13.0 tackles for loss last season, after combining for 8.0 sacks and 9.0 tackles for loss in his first two seasons at Illinois.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — Tennessee employers laid off more than 8,500 workers in 2025 compared to 7,320 last year, according to the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development.
This is about a 19% increase in layoffs, with WARN notices impacting 8,691 Tennesseans to date. As of 2023, 5,168 Tennessee workers were laid off through WARN notices.
Counties in Middle Tennessee impacted include:
- Davidson
- Sumner
- Maury
- Rutherford
- Williamson
- Wilson
- Coffee
- DeKalb
- Bedford
- Lawrence
- Putnam
The largest layoff this year was in Maury County. Come January, 710 employees will be laid off from GM Ultium Cells’ Spring Hill facility. Research Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee Knoxville Michael Kofoed tells FOX 17 News that the facility is is likely impacted by the rise on steel tariffs ruled out by the Trump administration. He adds steel tariffs raise input costs for employers which directly impacts employees’ salary or employment.
The second largest layoff impacted 658 workers at Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, LLC in Rutherford County with 615 workers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center permanently laid off. WARN notices are reports a company is required to file with the state to give workers time to find future employment.
Kofoed states that Tennessee is seeing a troubling trend, with layoffs skyrocketing since 2023.
“That is a very big and concerning number,” Kofoed said.
According to CNBC, more than 1.1 million U.S. employees were laid off this year, the highest 11-month total since 2020.
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