 During his freshman year in 1981, he played only sparingly as a reserve behind veteran Mike Cofer, and registered 11 tackles (6 solo).His first start came in the finale against Vanderbilt, in which he had 9 tackles (1 for a loss) and a batted-down pass.He also started in Tennessee's 28-21 victory over Wisconsin in the 1981 Garden State Bowl, and registered a team-leading 14 tackles.