University of Tennessee Athletics
A Dream Career At Tennessee
November 24, 2015 | Football
By Brian Rice
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.
UTSports.com
He not only idolized Tennessee football players, he felt a very really appreciation for the mystique and the tradition of the program. The orange jerseys, Rocky Top, running through the T, all of the things that make Tennessee football special to fans everywhere are the things that he fell in love with as a child.
But unlike many of the kids that share the same childhood memories that he carries with him, Kerbyson got to live out those dreams and more. He is not just a Volunteer, he has grown into the kind of player and person that the term truly stands for. It is a position that has always meant a great deal to him, but has grown even more special as the Knoxville native's time in a Tennessee uniform draws to a close.
"It's a huge thing for me," he said of being a Vol. "I've never been one to boast about my accomplishments, but being able to play at this place, it's crazy. You don't expect yourself to be here when you're a little kid when you're dreaming about playing and all these famous names that you grew up with. You don't think that you're going to be in their shoes and then, when you're there, it's a very surreal process of how it works and what all goes into it."
Kerbyson was already on the roster when Butch Jones took over the Tennessee program following the 2012 season., but he was exactly the type of player Jones was seeking as a leader in the program he wanted to build.
"I think he is grateful to represent the University of Tennessee and what it stands for on the field and off the field," Jones said. "He is as good of an ambassador as we have in our football program."
Those players that he grew up idolizing are now people that Kerbyson feels fortunate to interact with on a regular basis, people that he can call on whenever he needs advice on football or anything else. It is the bond of being a Volunteer.
Even with the bond of shared experience, Kerbyson still finds it somewhat surreal to look up and have people like Peyton Manning standing a few feet away on the sideline.
"It's definitely cool, especially when he's just on the sideline at the game and you can just talk to him," Kerbyson said. "It's not a weird thing to just ask Peyton a question. Other guys too, Jason Witten comes back, Chad Clifton came and talked to us as an o-line. It's weird to see those guys, you think of them as superstar athletes, untouchable as NFL players and they come back here and are regular guys. They want to give you anything they can. They offer up their numbers and say `If you need anything, call me.' That's the definition of VFL."
Jones has another definition for VFL, and that is the player that dons the 77 jersey on Saturdays.
"We always talk about defining `Vol for Life,' what does that mean?" Jones said. "Is that for a player that has played one year in the program and left? Is it a player that played three, four, five years? Is it for players that have made the program better because they were a part of that? I think if you're looking for an individual that defines `Vol For Life,' and we have had a lot of them, Kyler Kerbyson is one of those."
His career path has followed a trajectory that is common of some of the best linemen to play the game, but one that has required patience and perseverance in a world where everyone wants success right now.
Kerbyson redshirted in 2011 and played sparingly in 2012. In 2013, he saw action in 12 games as a reserve lineman, but never started. But his junior and senior seasons have made that journey well worth the wait. On an offensive line that has battled injures and more, Kerbyson has stated every game the last two seasons, putting him in the same company as the Tennessee linemen he idolized growing up.
"Individuals play the game for different reasons, Kyler Kerbyson plays the game because he loves football," Jones said. "He has been through so much in his career and he has experienced so much. For the adversity he has suffered, for the perseverance and the resolve he has showed and he's playing his best football as a senior. He's a leader and he's done everything that has been required of him and more."
His career trajectory at Tennessee, which included seasons with records that ate t the passionate Vol fan deep inside of him, has given him lessons about much more than football. Jones says that he wants players to leave UT better for having been a part of the program. He has exactly that in Kerbyson.
"It has made me a better man having to go through the different things that I've had to deal with," Kerbyson said. "Different coaches, friends leaving and losing and being able to stay positive and bounce back. It's all taught me a lot about patience and a lot about optimism, a lot about trust in your coaches and your friends. I will look back on this later on life when I'm going through struggles, I can say I made it through those five years stronger, I can deal with this."
He will leave Tennessee after this season as a lifelong part of the program he grew up cheering for. He will also leave with a degree, a couple of bowl rings and a much bigger family than just the one he grew up with in suburban Knoxville.
"You make friends in high school and college, but out here you make brothers when you're on a team," Kerbyson said. "You share adversity and that's what can really connect you. You went through the same stuff together, you understand each other really well. I've made some of the best friends I've ever had being on this team. I'm so happy that I came here and I'm sad that it's almost over."
