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Vols safety leaves a trail of hits
Berry earns notice for his interceptions and highlight-video stops
Alabama's Roy Upchurch (5) is tackled by Tennessee's Nevin McKenzie, right, and Eric Berry (14) during the second half of their game last Saturday.
Wade Payne/AP
Written by JOSEPH PERSON
jperson@thestate.com
Posted on 10.31.08
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The hits just keep coming for Eric Berry.
When asked this week to name his favorite tackle, the Tennessee strong safety referred a reporter to YouTube, where four videos from his hit collection have drawn more than 108,000 page views the past two weeks.
There’s the one of Berry laying out Georgia tailback and Heisman Trophy candidate Knowshon Moreno, who watched the final nine minutes from the sideline after Berry drilled him.
His most recent hit-of-the-week came Saturday against Alabama when the 5-foot-11, 195-pound Berry crushed Marquis Maze, sending the Crimson Tide receiver spinning backward in midair.
The Maze hit is Berry’s personal favorite because it reminds him of a shot the late Sean Taylor, whom Berry idolized, put on Florida State receiver P.K. Sam a few years ago when Taylor was at Miami.
“The hits are almost identical, so that (Maze tackle) is one of my favorites,” Berry said.
The big hits are just part of the package for Berry, who is tied for second nationally with five interceptions and ranks second on the Vols’ team with 55 tackles. In two seasons, Berry has 10 career interceptions and owns the SEC record for interception return yardage with 397.
But as Moreno, Maze and others will attest, Berry leaves his most lasting mark with his jarring tackles.
“He’s a guy that when he hits you, he arrives in a bad attitude,” said Tennessee defensive end Robert Ayers, a senior from Clio. “He doesn’t come to just bring a guy to the ground. He comes to send a message.”
The message: “We’re here to play and it’s going to be a physical game,” said Berry, adding he does not aim to hurt opponents when he lowers his shoulders into them.
ESPN analyst Bob Davie, the former Notre Dame coach who is calling Saturday’s USC-Tennessee game, said he was surprised watching film of Berry to learn the sophomore from Fairburn, Ga., was more than just a ball-hawk.
“The fact that he’s a legitimate strong safety is the thing that impressed me the most,” Davie said. “Not just the ball skills and the interceptions, but how he plays the position.”
Berry was a fan of Taylor, the Washington Redskins’ All-Pro safety who died after he was shot in his Miami home in November.
Miami recruited Berry, but he was scared off by the spate of hurricanes to hit Florida in recent years and the 2006 shooting death of Miami defensive end Bryan Pata.
Berry said he felt a better vibe at Tennessee, where his father, James, was a three-year starter at running back and captain of the 1981 team.
The Vols are glad to have him.
He was the SEC’s defensive freshman of the year in 2007 after breaking Bobby Majors’ 37-year-old school record for interception return yards. This season Berry is second in the SEC with 10 passes defended and continues to demonstrate a knack for finding the ball, said Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier.
“As a defensive back, he gets his hand on it a lot,” Spurrier said. “It was sort of interesting, that fumble that wasn’t a fumble last week (vs. Alabama). All of a sudden, some guy picked it out of the wad, and it was Berry. Picked it out and ran it in and of course, they called it a non-fumble. But he’s just a heck of a player.”
Berry was named to two midseason All-American teams and is a leading candidate for SEC defensive player of the year honors. Berry said he enjoys watching Vanderbilt cornerback D.J. Moore and Florida safety Major Wright, who, according to Berry, “puts fear into offensive players’ hearts.”
Sounds like another SEC safety in Knoxville.
“The main thing I have in my mind is just getting to the ball and good things will happen,” Berry said. “You never know when (the ball) is going to pop out or squirt out.”
Or be forcibly removed.
Reach Person at (803) 771-8496.
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Watch an Eric Berry interception and big hit on Georgia's Knowshon Moreno
Watch Eric Berry's hit on Alabama's Marquis Maze
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