Few players in the nation have ever represented their college teams better than Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack. From their all-out effort on the court to their generosity off the court, the beloved duo will go down as two of the best in the University of Tennessee men’s basketball history.
Their careers came to an end Sunday when the Vols once again fell just short of reaching the program’s first-ever Final Four. Facing a top-seeded Houston team grounded on similar principles of defense and toughness, No. 2 UT was overmatched in a 69-50 Elite Eight loss in Indianapolis.
The Vols are tied with Xavier as the programs with the most NCAA Tournament wins (31) to never reach the Final Four.
Zeigler and Mashack helped UT win 109 games during their careers, including nine tournament victories. The Vols were ranked in the Top 25 every week of their four seasons on Rocky Top. They captured an SEC Tournament title (2022), an SEC regular-season title (2024), and led the Vols to the Elite Eight in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history.
Grateful for the opportunities
After it was over, instead of feeling self-pity, they both were apologizing for what they didn’t accomplish.
“I wanted so bad to get [a national title] for Coach (Rick) Barnes,” Mashack says. “People have no idea how good he is as a basketball coach, as a person. I wanted this so bad for him and for these fans and for my brothers.”
Zeigler leaves UT as the SEC’s single-season assist record holder (275), UT’s career assist record holder (747), and UT’s all-time steals leader (251). He arrived in Knoxville as a lightly recruited guard from the Bronx, New York and quickly became the face of the program. He won over the hearts of UT fans through his hustle, tenacity and competitiveness.
After his family’s apartment was destroyed in a fire during his freshman season, Tennessee fans pledged more than $363,000 in less than 48 hours through a GoFundMe campaign to help Zeigler’s family relocate to Knoxville and purchase a home.
“Coming into Knoxville, I didn’t have any expectations for anything like that,” Zeigler says. “All I did was ask Coach Barnes for a chance and he gave it to me. The mark that they left on me and my family, they changed our lives, really.”
Mashack used his platform as a UT athlete to raise thousands of dollars for Second Harvest Food Bank of Tennessee through a virtual food drive to help feed needy families. The Southern California native’s passion for defense earned him the respect of his teammates and opponents across the nation.
“It’s really hard to say or think about any of the highs, because I wanted to win so bad, especially for these guys right here, for the Vol fan base. It’s hard,” Mashack says. “I’d been telling everybody since I got here, this is something that we represent, but this is something I have done my whole life. It’s really not about me. I don’t care about getting any of the glory. I don’t care about getting any of the accolades, nothing like that.”
Barnes staying put
Barnes understood the sentiment, and expected his senior guards to express their disappointment in a selfless fashion. Those are the characteristics that made Barnes recruit them to UT in the first place, seeing they had the potential to become cornerstones of the program and leave a lasting legacy.
“They know I’m an older guy. They know I would love to win a national championship, but they have absolutely not one thing to hang their head down or be sorry about,” Barnes says. “We have a slogan at Tennessee: ‘Give your all for Tennessee.’ They did that, in more ways than you can imagine.”
Barnes made it clear during the tournament that he would continue coaching next season and was not considering retirement. The UT staff will get right back to building another roster with a chance of eventually crashing through to the Final Four. UT has six open scholarships to use in the transfer portal with four returning players and three incoming freshmen.
“When you have two guys in particular who have been with us for four years, Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack, when we look back, I think they will be the two most accomplished Tennessee Volunteer players ever,” Barnes says. “We owe it to them to continue with the standard they have set, or even take it to another level.”
Although Zeigler won’t be in a UT uniform any longer, his connection to the Vols will never fade.
“This has been the best four years of my life. Knoxville will be my home the rest of my life,” Zeigler says. “No ups and downs. Just ups. Vol Nation, I love you. Thank you.”