KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — One of the great players in Tennessee football history will be honored in front of the Volunteer faithful ahead of his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Eric Berry will be honored at Neyland Stadium during the Vols’ Week 7 clash against Texas A&M on Saturday, The defensive standout who played at Tennessee from 2007-2009 will be enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame on Dec. 5 at a ceremony in Las Vegas.
“We also get a chance to welcome Eric Berry back here. Two-time All-American, a guy that is going to be inducted into the (College Football) Hall of Fame here later this year,” Head Coach Josh Heupel said Monday. “A guy that represents everything that is good about Tennessee football, and excited to have him back here at home.”
“A guy that represents everything that is good about Tennessee football, and excited to have him back here at home.”
Josh Heupel on Eric Berry
In 2009, Berry became the first and only player in school history to win the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation’s top defensive back.
A three-time All-SEC selection, including first-team honors in 2008 and 2009, Berry was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year in 2008 after leading the conference with seven interceptions.
Berry concluded his three seasons at Tennessee as the SEC’s all-time leader in career interception return yards and he ranks fifth in Tennessee history for career interceptions.
He was selected fifth overall in the 2010 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, becoming the highest defensive draft pick from Tennessee since Reggie White in 1984. Berry earned five Pro Bowl selections and three first-team All-Pro honors over his nine-year career.
He was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2014. After Berry was declared cancer free, he returned to the NFL and was named the 2015 NFL Comeback Player of the Year.
