Tri-Star Top 10: Tennessee’s Best College Football Players Through Week 4
Four weeks into the 2026 college football season, breakout performances are reshaping the race among the Volunteer State’s best players.
This ranking considers players from each of the state’s Division I programs and weighs total production, efficiency, versatility, individual performances and level of competition.
These are the Tri-Star Network’s Top 10 college football players in Tennessee through Week 3.
1. Jaylin Carter - RB, Memphis
55 carries | 437 rushing yards | 7.9 yards per carry | 7 touchdowns
Jaylin Carter remains atop the board, but his lead is no longer comfortable.
Memphis is coming off a bye week, so Carter did not have an opportunity to add to his totals. However, his overall résumé has enough production to prevent him from dropping.
The field behind Carter is closing quickly, and his dominant performance against Arkansas State is carrying considerable weight. To protect his spot atop the rankings, he will need to emerge from this bye week energized and ready to produce as Memphis begins conference play against Charlotte.
For now, Jaylin Carter has done enough to remain No. 1.
2. Marcus Stokes — QB, Memphis
70-of-98 passing | 1,053 yards | 9 touchdowns | 3 interceptions
Marcus Stokes has managed to move up the rankings despite Memphis being on a bye.
His résumé closely resembles those of the quarterbacks ranked below him, but Stokes has produced against a much tougher schedule.
Stokes doesn’t have one game bumping his numbers. He has remained consistent, with his best showing coming against Memphis’ toughest opponent, Boise State. His three interceptions had held him back in the past, but nine touchdowns and a 71.4 percent completion rate against mostly FBS competition are more than enough to outweigh the turnovers.
In just two weeks, Stokes has gone from an honorable mention to the No. 2 player in the state.
3. Chris Parson — QB, Austin Peay
62-of-94 passing | 1,087 yards | 7 touchdowns | 1 interception | 166 rushing yards | 4 touchdowns
Chris Parson makes his top-three debut following his most complete performance of the season.
Austin Peay is coming off a 35-12 victory over UT Martin in which Parson complete 17 of his 21 passes for 254 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 82 sack-adjusted yards and two more scores.
The biggest difference between this game and his previous performances was the absence of one or two explosive passing plays bolstering his numbers. His longest completion covered just 30 yards. His most explosive play actually came on the ground when he opened Austin Peay’s scoring with a 66-yard touchdown run.
Outside of Vanderbilt, this was Austin Peay’s most competitive game thus far. It was also the only game outside of Vanderbilt in which the Governors trailed at halftime. The running game couldn’t get going, UT Martin’s Defense consistently penetrated the back field, and Austin Peay committed costly early miscues, including a safety and a fumble on its first two possessions.
With help from the defense and special teams, Parson out the offense on his shoulders and rallied the Governors to their third consecutive victory.
Limited opportunities may have delayed his climb, but after delivering a complete performance against UT Martin, Chris Parson has officially cracked the top three.
4. Mason Mims — QB, ETSU
104-of-144 passing | 1,211 yards | 8 touchdowns | 2 interceptions
Mason Mims is coming off another dominant performance against Western Carolina.
Mims completed 20 of his 27 attempts for 220 yards and a touchdown, raising his season completion rate to an absurd 72.2 percent through five games. He leads every quarterback in Tennessee—at both the FBS and FCS levels—in passing yards and is tied for 19th nationally.
Mims has remained remarkably consistent, with his worst performance coming against North Carolina, where he threw for only 178 yards and an interception.
His drop in rankings is not the result of any decline in his performance. Instead, Marcus Stokes gets the bump due to his production against higher level of competition, while Chris parson’s rushing ability gives him an added dimension. When production, versatility and level of competition are all considered, Mims’ limited impact on the ground has to factor into the comparison.
Mims remains one of the state’s most consistent passers, keeping him firmly inside the top five despite his slight drop.
5. Arion Carter — LB, Tennessee
27 tackles | 1 sack | 1 fumble recovery | 1 pass deflection
Arion Carter makes his top-10 debut after playing just three games.
Carter missed Tennessee’s season opener against Furman due to an NCAA suspension for accepting a $427 flight ticket during his NFL pre-draft process. The Smyrna native made his season debut in Atlanta, leading the Volunteers defensively during their 45-24 rout of Georgia Tech.
Carter recorded eight tackles against both the Yellow Jackets and Kennesaw State. Those performances were impressive, but his limited opportunities and a lack of splash plays kept him outside the top 10.
This weekend, however, he did exactly what we were waiting for. When Tennessee welcomed the No. 1 ranked Texas Longhorns to Neyland Stadium, Carter recorded a season-high 11 tackles while battling the most talented offensive line he has faced this year. He also recovered an onside kick, giving the Vols’ offense an opportunity to mount a late comeback.
After making an immediate impact through only three games and leading Tennessee’s defense against its toughest opponent, Arion Carter enters the ranking at No. 5.
6. Jax Leatherwood — QB, Tennessee Tech
96-of-137 passing | 1,106 yards | 13 touchdowns | 2 interceptions
Jax Leatherwood also makes his top-10 debut following a career-best performance that earned him Tri-Star CFB Player of the Week honors.
Leatherwood and Tennessee Tech are coming off a 42-38 comeback victory over Wofford. The senior quarterback completed 38 of his 48 passes for 427 yards and five touchdowns, establighing career highs in both categories.
That performance certainly strengthens Leatherwood’s case, but his résumé is not built on one game alone. Prior to facing Wofford, he had completed 58 of his 89 passes for 679 yards and eight touchdowns with just one interception through three games. For perspective, Leatherwood had already thrown the same number of touchdown passes through three games that Mason Mims has through five.
Leatherwood’s lack of FBS competition and lower completion rate had previously kept him off this outside these rankings. However, his dominant late-game comeback against Wofford moves him comfortably into the top 10.
7. Junior Sherrill — WR, Vanderbilt
21 receptions | 367 yards | 2 touchdowns
Junior Sherrill debuted on this list last week following his two-touchdown performance against NC State, which earned him Tri-Star CFB Co-Player of the Week honors.
He justified his ranking this week by adding another six completions and 95 yards during Vanderbilt’s 21-15 loss to Auburn. The word “consistency” appears frequently in these rankings, and Sherrill embodies it. His four performances have produced remarkably steady stat lines: four receptions for 70 yards, five for 94, six for 108, and six for 95.
That is exactly the type of production this list rewards. Sherrill’s résumé has not been inflated by one or two explosive plays, nor has it been built against lower-level opponents. He has consistently shown up against FBS competition and remained a dependable weapon for Vanderbilt’s offense.
Sherrill’s consistency through four games keeps him firmly positioned at No. 7.
8. TJ Peyton — RB, ETSU
72 carries | 449 rushing yards | 5 touchdowns
TJ Peyton remains a fixture in these rankings.
This week the sophomore running back added 102 yards and a touchdown on 16 carried during East Tennessee State’s 58-37 rout of Western Carolina.
Outside of ETSU’s beatdown in Chapel Hill, Peyton has averaged 99.3 rushing yards per game while scoring five touchdowns.
His dependability in the backfield, paired with Mason Mims’ arm talent, helps explain why the Bucaneers are averaging 44.5 points per game against FCS opponents.
Peyton may not produce the flashiest numbers on this list, but his consistent efficiency moves him up one position to No. 8.
9. CJ Heard — S, Vanderbilt
30 tackles | 2 sacks | 2 forced fumbles | 2 pass deflections
CJ Heard drops one position this week, but his performance against Auburn only strengthened his case as one of the state’s top defensive players.
Heard led Vanderbilt with nine tackles during its 21–15 loss, including eight solo stops. He also deflected a pass that was intercepted by Miles Capers in the first quarter, helping the Commodores keep Auburn’s offense in check throughout the afternoon.
Through four games, Heard leads Vanderbilt with 30 tackles while also recording two sacks, two forced fumbles, and two pass deflections. His ability to create pressure, defend the pass, and consistently finish tackles makes him one of the most versatile safeties in the state.
Vanderbilt may have suffered its first loss, but Heard continues to deliver. He remains firmly inside the top 10 at No. 9.
10. Dre Delinois — LB, ETSU
45 tackles | 1 tackle for loss | 1 pass deflection
Dre Delinois is the third player to make his top-10 debut this week, rounding out the rankings after emerging as the centerpiece of ETSU’s defense.
The senior linebacker has accumulated 45 tackles through five games, including back-to-back 11-tackle performances to open the season. He followed those outings with 10 tackles against North Carolina and eight against West Georgia before adding five tackles and a pass deflection during ETSU’s 58–37 victory over Western Carolina.
To put his start into perspective, Delinois has already matched the 45 tackles he recorded across 11 games last season. He also leads ETSU by 16 tackles, making him the Buccaneers’ most productive defender by a considerable margin.
Delinois may not have the splashiest defensive résumé on this list, but consistently finding the football matters. His remarkable tackling production earns him the final position in this week’s top 10.
Honorable Mentions
Denver Harper — WR/RET, Austin Peay (8 receptions, 258 yards, 4 receiving touchdowns, 1 rushing touchdown, 140 punt return yards, 1 punt return touchdown)
Cam’Ron Lacy — WR, Middle Tennessee (29 receptions, 310 yards, 4 touchdowns)
Nick Rinaldi — LB, Vanderbilt (22 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 4 pass deflections)
Roman Gagliano — QB, Middle Tennessee (832 yards, 8 touchdowns, 1 interception, 1 rushing touchdown)
Antonio Martin — RB, Middle Tennessee (64 carries, 345 yards, 1 touchdown)
Offensive lineman are being left off this list, due to lack of stats to back up their ranking. Stay tuned for an updated ranking in the future!