Tennessee

Titans Showing Interest in Three-Year Ohio State Starter

Published

8 months ago

April 8, 2025

Titans Showing Interest in Three-Year Ohio State Starter

The Tennessee Titans could be looking at an intriguing offensive line prospect to upgrade their trenches ahead of next season.

According to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, the Titans are hosting Ohio State guard Donovan Jackson on a top-30 visit this week, potentially showing their hand at interest in the offensive line prospect for this month’s draft.

Jackson, a three-year starter for the Buckeyes, has some worthwhile appeal as an option early on day two, holding strong intrigue due to his size and high-level football IQ. He’s logged 2,500 snaps during his career at Ohio State, also earning three first-team Big Ten honors in his time as well. It’s easy to see how he’s emerged as one of the top guard prospects in the class.

For the Titans, they’ve made sure to do a bit of work to their offensive line this offseason, acquiring both Dan Moore Jr. and Kevin Zeitler to upgrade their outlook upfront for next season. However, that doesn’t mean this team won’t look toward the draft to further their optimism on the line for this year and beyond.

Especially at guard, Zeitler is far from a long-term plug at the position, due to his status as an age-35 veteran. If the Titans wanted to get ahead of the curve, they could pick up an early-round guard to place behind their offseason signing to develop, or even move Jackson around the line to have an immediate impact due to his versatility.

Jackson could be an ideal target for the Titans once they come around on the board at pick 35, perhaps as an immediate young pairing for projected number-one pick Cam Ward, if Tennessee does indeed like what they see from the Ohio State product. Clearly, his resume and place around multiple scouting boards across the league seem to indicate he’d be a safe option to lean on.

The Titans will finalize their plans around the board once the 2025 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday, April 24th in Green Bay, WI.

Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

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Tennessee

Tracking Music City Bowl opt outs for Tennessee and Illinois

Published

5 hours ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

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.

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More than 8,500 layoffs hit Tennessee in 2025, nearly 19% increase from 2024

Published

17 hours ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

More than 8,500 layoffs hit Tennessee in 2025, nearly 19% increase from 2024

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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Nonprofit rescues 11 ‘emaciated and suffering’ animals from Tennessee property ahead of dangerous cold snap

Published

1 day ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Nonprofit rescues 11 ‘emaciated and suffering’ animals from Tennessee property ahead of dangerous cold snap

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – The Animal Rescue Corps (ARC) is asking for donations after rescuing 11 animals Friday.

ARC said it was contacted by law enforcement in an unidentified rural Tennessee area to rescue five dogs and six cats in what the nonprofit is calling “Operation Cold Snap.”

In the rescue, the nonprofit took in two emaciated Great Danes, three Pit Bulls and six cats. ARC said some of the animals are emaciated and suffering from untreated bite wounds and infections.

The nonprofit said the animals were kept without heat or regular care.

ARC shared a video of the rescue. In it, you can see the property s in disarray with trash littering the floor and overturned furniture.

This rescue comes just days before Middle Tennessee is expected to see its coldest temperatures of the season.

Now, ARC is asking for donations to help the 11 animals rescued Operation Cold Snap. Those interested in donating can do so on the nonprofit’s website.

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