Jeremiah Telander
| No. 22 – Tennessee Volunteers | |
|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker |
| Class | Senior |
| Personal information | |
| Born | February 5, 2005 |
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Gainesville (Gainesville, Georgia) |
| College |
|
| Stats at ESPN | |
Jeremiah James Telander (born February 5, 2005) is an American college football linebacker for the Tennessee Volunteers. He was given the nickname "Power T" by Volunteers coach William Inge.[1]
Early life & high school career
[edit]Telander grew up in Gainesville, Georgia and attended North Hall High School before transferring to Gainesville High School as a senior.[2] During high school, he played football, basketball, and ran track.[3] While playing at North Hall, he earned back-to-back Region 7-AAA Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2020 and 2021.[2] As a senior, Telander led Gainesville to a 14-1 record and an appearance in the Georgia Class 6A State Championship game,[4] where he contributed 13 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks and blocked two PATs.[4] He committed to the Vols in June 2022 after compiling more than 25 Division I offers, including 18 from Power Five programs.[5]
Telander enrolled early and joined the Volunteers in practices for the 2022 Orange Bowl.[6][better source needed]
| Name | Hometown | School | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeremiah Telander LB |
Gainesville, Georgia | Gainesville | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 217 lb (98 kg) | Jun 26, 2022 | |
Recruit ratings: Rivals:  247Sports: ESPN:  (81) | ||||||
College career
[edit]As a freshman at Tennessee, Telander played in all 13 games as a reserve linebacker and on special teams.[7] He led all freshman on the team in tackles with 35.[1][7] The following season, he worked his way into starting role at middle linebacker and final eight games of the season, including Tennessee's first College Football Playoff berth.[3] In 2025, he started every game and ranked second on the team with a career-best 80 total tackles.[8]
On February 4, 2026, the Southeastern Conference (SEC) announced that Telander had been named to the 2026 SEC Football Leadership Council.[9]
Statistics
[edit]| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Total | Solo | Ast | Sack | PD | Int | Yds | TD | FF | FR | TD | ||
| 2023 | Tennessee | 13 | 0 | 35 | 15 | 20 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | Tennessee | 13 | 8 | 43 | 20 | 23 | 0.5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2025 | Tennessee | 13 | 13 | 80 | 28 | 52 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 39 | 21 | 158 | 63 | 95 | 1.5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
Personal life
[edit]Telander is the son of Steven and Angela Telander and has a sister, Grace.[10] His father played college football at UMass before spending time as an assistant coach at Missouri, Bowling Green, UTEP and UMass.[3]
References
[edit]- 1 2 Brown, Patrick (April 8, 2025). "Jeremiah Telander and his perfect nickname setting 'gold standard' for Tennessee LBs this spring". GoVols247. 247Sports. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- 1 2 Butler, Ric (June 26, 2022). "BREAKING: Tennessee Lands Inside Linebacker to 2023 Class". Rocky Top Insider. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Jeremiah Telander - Football". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- 1 2 Brown, Patrick (August 30, 2023). "How Jeremiah Telander has 'thrilled' Vols heading into freshman season". GoVols247. 247Sports. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Callahan, Ryan (June 26, 2022). "LB Telander commits to Vols, says Tennessee 'the right place for me'". GoVols247. 247Sports. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Ray, Matt (June 26, 2022). "Breaking: Coveted LB Telander Talks Decision to Choose Vols". Tennessee Volunteers On SI. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- 1 2 Sparks, Adam. "How can Tennessee football early enrollees impress in spring? Follow these 5 examples". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Smith, Craig (July 9, 2026). "National outlet names a Tennessee positional group as college football's best for 2026". Rocky Top Talk. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ "Jeremiah Telander Named To 2026 SEC Football Leadership Council". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Abernathy, Brad (August 26, 2022). "Faces of Hall County: Jeremiah Telander". Abernathy Cochran. Retrieved July 15, 2026.