4-star defensive tackle Emmit Gooden signs with Vols football

Just before Jeremy Pruitt’s National Signing Day press conference, 4-star JUCO defensive lineman Emmit Gooden signed with Tennessee to play for the Vols.

Gooden is, according to the 247Sports Composite, the nation’s No. 17 JUCO prospect overall, the No. 7 JUCO defensive tackle, and the No. 4 JUCO player in the state of Tennessee.

Gooden was highly-coveted by a number of notable schools and held offers from the following:

  • Alabama
  • Georgia
  • USC
  • Florida
  • Arkansas
  • Mississippi State
  • Missouri
  • West Virginia
  • Arizona State
  • Louisville
  • Oklahoma
  • TCU
  • UAB
  • Texas-San Antonio

It appeared to come down to Tennessee and West Virginia, and at Gooden’s announcement ceremony, everybody with him had only one hat and chose the school represented by their hat. Gooden had only a West Virginia hat on his table, but when his turn arrived, he pulled a Tennessee hat out from under the table.

 

 

Joseph Norwood signs with Vols

Just like with JJ Peterson, Tennessee hasn’t officially announced the signing, but 247Sports is reporting that 3-star wide receiver Joseph Norwood has in fact signed with the Vols.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Norwood is the nation’s No. 75 athlete, and the No. 30 player in the state of Tennessee. He has a full offer sheet, although most of them are from lower-level schools.

 

Check out the quick interview with Norwood by Stephen Hargis.

Elite linebacker JJ Peterson signs with Vols football

No official word from Tennessee at the time we’re writing this, but 247Sports and Rivals are both reporting that the Vols have signed 4-star linebacker JJ Peterson despite a late push by Alabama.

Update: It’s official:

According to the 247Sports Composite, Peterson is the nation’s No. 48 player overall, the nation’s No. 3 outside linebacker, and the No. 7 player in the state of Georgia. As you’d expect, his offer sheet is impressive:

  • Alabama
  • Georgia
  • Auburn
  • Florida State
  • Clemson
  • Florida
  • Arkansas
  • South Carolina
  • Michigan
  • North Carolina
  • Georgia Southern
  • Georgia State
  • South Alabama

 

Great job by Jeremy Pruitt and Tennessee to hold on to Peterson in the midst of a wild day.

3-star safety Trevon Flowers signs with the Vols

Trevon Flowers, a 3-star safety from Tucker, Georgia, is officially a Tennessee Volunteer.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Flowers is the nation’s No. 87 safety in this year’s class. He chose Tennessee over Clemson, Kentucky, Illinois, Western Kentucky, and Appalachian State.

 

Welcome to Rocky Top, Trevon Flowers.

Under-the-radar Cedric Tillman signs with Tennessee

Cedric Tillman, a 3-star wide receiver from Las Vegas, has officially become a Tennessee Volunteer.

Tillman is one of the under-the-radar guys that Tennessee discovered late in the recruiting process, and although 247Sports has awarded him three stars, he doesn’t appear on any national, positional, or state rankings. His offer list includes Hawaii, UNLV, and Weber State.

 

According to Rivals, Tillman grew four inches and put on 25 pounds between his junior and senior seasons, and he signed with the Vols without ever having stepped foot on campus because he appreciated the coaches taking a chance on him.

Word around the Twitters is that Tennessee has now also offered wide receiver Joseph Norwood, which might mean the other receivers higher on their board are going elsewhere. We’ll see.

3-star defensive end John Mincey chooses Tennessee over South Carolina

John Mincey, a 3-star defensive end from Homerville, Georgia, has spurned the South Carolina Gamecocks to become a Tennessee Volunteer.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Mincey is the nation’s No. 38 strongside defensive end in this year’s class. He chose Tennessee over South Carolina and Arkansas and also had offers from the following schools:

  • Georgia
  • Florida State
  • Florida
  • Auburn
  • LSU
  • Kentucky
  • Mississippi State
  • Ole Miss
  • Georgia Tech
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Cincinnati
  • Colorado State
  • Georgia Southern
  • Troy
  • Tulane
  • USF

 

Mincey is the 15th player in this year’s class and joins Greg Emerson, Kingston Harris, and Brant Lawless as the new guys on the defensive line.

 

Tennessee commit Anthony Grant flips to FSU on National Signing Day

Well, this isn’t the way you want to start the day, but 3-star (per 247Sports) athlete Anthony Grant, whose Twitter bio identifies him as a Tennessee commit and includes a pinned tweet from June 25 saying he is committed to the Vols, reportedly announced this morning that he has changed his mind and will go to FSU:

Grant actually committed to Butch Jones, and he has reportedly been wavering for some time, although the latest concern was that he would choose Virginia Tech over the Vols. Regardless, he’s going somewhere other than Rocky Top. Best of luck to him.

While this isn’t the way you want to start the day, it’s not a shock. The Vols are still in the mix for some great players today. There are three players scheduled to announce at 10:00 a.m.: 5-star cornerback Tyson Campbell, 3-star safety Trevon Flowers, and 3-star defensive end John Mincey.

National Signing Day: Announcement times of interest to Vols fans

It’s National Signing Day, and today we’ll find out how much the solid and frenzied short-term work by Jeremy Pruitt and his staff will actually bear fruit. Tennessee starts the day at No. 20, and there will be a lot of movement among all teams, but we’re hoping that’s the floor for the Vols today and that they might even crack the Top 15, a solid win for a new coach on a short cycle.
Here’s a list of recruits on Tennessee’s recruiting board as of this morning along with their announcement times.

RB Anthony Grant

3-star ATH
7:00 a.m.
Update: Tennessee commit, flipped to FSU this morning.

Tyson Campbell

5-star CB
10:00 a.m.
Probably Georgia.
Update: Yep, Georgia.

Trevon Flowers

3-star S
10:00 a.m.
Tennessee appears to be in good shape here, although Clemson and Kentucky are players.

John Mincey

3-star SDE
10:00 a.m.
 Appears to be between Tennessee and South Carolina. Probably South Carolina.

Tre’Shaun Harrison

4-star ATH
10:45 a.m.
Looking like FSU.

Otito Ogbonnia

3-star DT
11:00 a.m.
Appears to be between Tennessee, UCLA, Texas Tech, and Nebraska. It’s looking like UCLA leads this morning.

Quay Walker

4-star LB
11:00 a.m.
Tennessee should be in good shape, but mystery abounds, and Georgia, Alabama, and Auburn are players. Georgia, in particular, has made significant inroads lately and according to some experts, leads.

Olaijah Griffin

5-star CB
1:00 p.m.
 Appears to be headed to USC, but Tennessee and Alabama are still theoretically in play.

Glenn Beal

3-star TE
1:00 p.m.
Appears to be headed to Texas A&M, although Tennessee, Alabama, LSU, and Ole Miss are possibly still factors.
Update: Texas A&M.

Jordan Young

3-star WR
1:00 p.m.
 Appears to be a two-horse race between Tennessee and Florida State, with FSU perhaps leading late.

Joseph Norwood

3-star WR
1:00 p.m.
Appears to be a guy the Vols want if they have room. He’ll likely jump if they call.

JJ Peterson

4-star OLB
1:00 p.m.
Tennessee should be in good shape here, but Alabama is a factor.

Jacob Copeland

4-star WR
2:00 p.m.
Probably Florida, but Tennessee is in the hunt, and if Alabama has room, watch out.

Taiyon Palmer

4-star CB
11:00 a.m. or 2:30 p.m.
Appears to be between Tennessee, NC State, and Nebraska, with NC State the favorite.

Jashaun Corbin

4-star RB
3:30 p.m.
Looking like Texas A&M.

Emmit Gooden

4-star JUCO DT
3:30 p.m.
Tennessee apparently leads, with West Virginia and Arkansas pursuing.

Jermayne Lole

3-star SDE
4:00 p.m.
Arizona State has led most of the way, but Tennessee is a real factor late.

Isaac Taylor-Stuart

4-star CB
5:10 p.m.
Likely USC, but they reportedly might not have room. If not, Tennessee could be in decent shape, although Alabama and Texas A&M are factors as well.
Update: It’s USC.

Cedric Tillman

3-star WR
5:30 p.m.
This should be Tennessee, with UNLV and Hawaii in the picture.

Tavion Thomas

3-star RB
TBD
Cincinnati?
Update: Yep, Cincinnati.

Eddie Smith

3-star CB
TBD
Probably Alabama, with Tennessee as a long shot.
Update: Alabama it is.