I was thinking along the same lines. Sheppard has come a long way. And you're right, Chavis has done an excellent job with the LB group! Chavis' track record at UT also tells the story that he's great with LB's. Kevin Burnett, Omar Gaither and Jerod Mayo are just a few Chavis' LB alums.
Al Wilson comes to mind as well. Sheppard and Coleman have both been really stellar this year. Great to have reliable LBs again.