Vols put the afterburners on Wake Forest en route to SEC play

Tennessee played the last eight minutes of the first half without Grant Williams, Admiral Schofield, and Jordan Bowen, all out with two fouls. Wake Forest was up 22-19 when Bowden joined the other two on the bench. But, apparently believing Rick Barnes’ comments about this team having 11 starters, a rotation unaccustomed to playing together pushed the Vols in front by a point at halftime. This was due in large part to the play of Kyle Alexander, who scored seven of his 11 points during that stretch.

With their best players back on the floor, Tennessee quickly built a seven point lead in the second half, then kept Wake at about that distance until the 4:30 mark. The Demon Deacons scored to cut the lead to six…and then Tennessee closed the game on a 13-0 run.

Only the last two were free throws. Bowden hit a three. Schofield hit a three. Bowden hit another three. Then Jordan Bone went to the basket. Up six with 4:30 to play, up 17 with 1:23 to play. That’ll do.

This was Tennessee’s largest margin of victory on the road since beating Tony Barbee’s last Auburn squad by 28 in Cuonzo Martin’s final season. And it was an emphatic statement in the final four minutes after 36 hampered by foul trouble and turnovers. Normally a thing like Lamonte Turner and James Daniel shooting 3-of-14 off the bench would be problematic. But the Vols got double figures from all five starters.

When they were on the floor, Tennessee’s starting five showed incredible efficiency. Bone, Bowden, Schofield, Williams, and Alexander went 25-of-37 (67.6%). And Jordan Bowden, who already led the SEC in three-point shooting coming in, went 5-for-5. He is now a ridiculous 26-of-42 (61.9%) on the year.

Other numbers that would have seemed ridiculous at the start of the year:  the Vols are 10th in RPI and 19th in KenPom following this win. Even a .500 performance in SEC play should get Tennessee on the dance floor at this point. But this win continues the shift in conversation: from just trying to do enough to get in, to heading into league play trying to, you know, win it.

More on the SEC next week, as the Vols open at Arkansas next Saturday, then host Bruce Pearl and John Calipari back-to-back. For now, a standing ovation for Tennessee’s performance in the non-conference; today was a fine exclamation point.

Go Vols.

 

Wake Forest and #nobadlosses

Tennessee…escaped? Is “escaped” the word we want to use for Wednesday night? Furman held the Vols to 37.1% from the floor and 5-of-20 from the arc; nine missed free throws didn’t help. But Tennessee’s defense was again present and accounted for: Devin Sibley scored 22 points on 16 shots, but no other Paladin had double figures and Furman shot just 39.7% as a team. The Vols were +14 in rebounding and, even when shots weren’t falling, continued to share the ball well with an assist on 17 of 23 made baskets. And, this time, a final minute that got a little too fast and loose broke Tennessee’s way.

The result: a 66-61 win, moving the Vols to 8-2 on the year. After the pre-Atlantis games with Presbyterian and High Point, Rick Barnes put three solid regional mid-majors in Tennessee’s path in Mercer, Lipscomb, and Furman. Mercer was missing their best player in a 24-point UT win, but Tennessee was appropriately challenged by Lipscomb and pushed a little too far by Furman. But the home team prevailed every night.

This means Tennessee’s resume has no bad losses. The Vols will finish the regular season undefeated against non-major-conference opponents for the first time since 2010. About half of those losses the last seven years came to traditional mid-major powers. But getting through unscathed for the first time since Bruce Pearl’s next-to-last season is still an accomplishment, especially for a team originally projected to finish 13th in the SEC.

Tennessee Mid-Major Losses since 2010

2016-17 Chattanooga, vs Gonzaga
2015-16 vs George Washington, at Butler, vs Gonzaga
2014-15 vs VCU
2013-14 vs UTEP, at Wichita State
2012-13 Memphis
2011-12 vs Memphis, at Oakland, Austin Peay, at Charleston, at Memphis
2010-11 Oakland, at Charlotte, Charleston

Somebody has to come in last in the SEC – more on that next week – but right now, each of the league’s 14 teams are in the Top 90 in KenPom. This is shaping up to be the best SEC of at least this decade, and the league appears cupcake-free for the first time in more than 15 years. Tennessee may still lose some games they shouldn’t, but there shouldn’t be any resume-crushing opportunities in the SEC.

But first:  Wake Forest.

Hey, Danny Manning!

The former LA Clipper all-star spent a decade as a Kansas assistant, then got Tulsa to the NCAA Tournament in two years. This is his fourth year in Winston-Salem; after winning just seven ACC games in his first two years, Manning got Wake to 9-9 in league play last season. That got them a ticket to Dayton, where they lost to Kansas State in the First Four.

They lost John Collins to the first round of the draft, but returned guards Bryant Crawford (16.4 points and 4.9 assists) and Keyshawn Woods (15.8 points and 39% from the arc). But it did not go well for them at the start of this season:  lost to Georgia Southern by two, lost to Liberty by 13, lost to Drake by three, beat Quinnipiac, then lost to Houston by five. Since then, the Demon Deacons have won six in a row. But Tennessee will be the best team Wake has faced, by far: only Houston (41) and Georgia Southern (97.6) have a projected RPI of better than 100 in their non-conference schedule.

Another hot-shooting foe

In 11 games, Tennessee will have faced four of the nation’s Top 20 offenses (via KenPom), and Arkansas will make five next weekend. Wake shoots 48.7% from the floor (49th nationally), 39% from the arc (54th), and 77% from the line (20th). But, again, consider the competition.

Despite their own competition, the Vols are 36th nationally in field goal percentage defense in giving up 39.1% per game. Tennessee is 18th in KenPom’s defensive ratings; Villanova (46%) and North Carolina (43.3%) remain the only teams to shoot better than 40% against Barnes’ squad. If that defense travels, the Vols can make Wake Forest less comfortable than they’ve been all season.

If the Vols want to stay in the Top 25 heading into conference play, they’ll need this win. This would also give Tennessee a second true road win, along with Georgia Tech, and virtually guarantee an NCAA Tournament bid if the Vols simply went .500 in SEC play. It would be a fitting bridge between a great start and a great opportunity in league play.

Saturday, 12:30 PM ET, ESPN2. Go Vols.

 

And Now the Craziness Really Begins

After an eventful first-ever Early Signing Day that saw Tennessee ink 12 prospects, including five players who signed/committed yesterday, the final phase of the 2018 recruiting cycle has begun.  The class has a nice base of players, highlighted by 8 early enrollees and multiple immediate contributors.

With just a few weeks until the traditional February National Signing Day, new coach Jeremy Pruitt and his staff will attempt to fill out their first signing class with the kinds of players who can quickly put Tennessee back into SEC contention.  Pruitt and Co. are in an interesting and unique position in that while they were able to salvage a situation in which they had barely two weeks to cobble together the early portion of their class, the stretch run to February will likely seem like an eternity.  And for Vol fans what it exciting is that, especially compared to what was truly available to Tennessee in December, the remaining board looks chock full of bonafide SEC championship winning type players.

Although Tennessee was at a disadvantage relative to its SEC peers due to the new staff coming on late and the early signing period, the Vols could actually be in a good position to be the “best looking girl at the bar at midnight” for some really talented prospects who see their top choices fill up.  In short, as much as it hurt to see rivals like Alabama and (especially) UGA load up on bigtimers yesterday, there simply aren’t enough spots at those places for all of the available top talent, and the Vols are in a real position to capitalize.

As the staff surveys the landscape to see who all signed and didn’t sign, there will undoubtedly be more offers sent out.  Not only that but not only will Pruitt have a full staff in less than two weeks (likely with strong recruiters who bring their own contacts) but he himself as well as new DC Kevin Sherrer will be less constrained to recruit unsigned Bama/UGA commits and targets.  Finally, I would expect that with the success at landing three California products yesterday and all of the uncertainty on the West Coast with new staffs still getting their bearings at UCLA and Oregon in particular, not to mention Tyson Helton’s contacts.

All that said, below is a quick look at the current “February Board” and where the Vols stand with each player, by position:

QB

After signing former Cal commit JT Shrout yesterday, Tennessee is likely still in the market for a second QB.  Shrout is a perfect “bridge QB” for the new staff, as he appears talented enough to take a chance on but not enough of a big name to scare off a true bluechipper in 2019.  Problem is, the remaining pickings are, shall we say, slim. If Tennessee can get in the mix with those I think the staff will take a shot.  If not, my guess is they’ll look hard at the grad transfer market as a way to get some 2018 depth in a one year rental without gumming up the works for the 2019 class and beyond.  Early names to watch for include former Michigan starter Wilton Speights and recent MTSU graduate Brent Stockstill.  Others will pop up in the coming months for sure.

RB

Landing Jeremy Banks yesterday was big for the Vols, both in terms of what looks like a really good prospect as well as planting a flag in Memphis for the new staff going forward.  Of course, helping to sew up teammate and fellow bluechipper OL Jerome Carvin makes Banks look that much better.  The Vols missed out on JUCO product Greg Bell, who signed with Nebraska – whose decision it was is unknown and frankly moot, but I for one am ok with it, because I don’t think Tennessee needs a JUCO back unless he’s a no-brainer stud (which Bell is not) and I’m not entirely sure this class needs more than one RB in total.

Though Buford, GA product Anthony Grant is still technically committed to the Vols most people think he’s unlikely to end up signing with Tennessee in February and most feel like that’s Pruitt’s decision.  I’m a fan of Grant, as I think he’s a really nice looking prospect and would also be the third player to sign with the Vols from the powerful Buford HS program in the last few years.

Right now the depth chart looks like this: John Kelly/Ty Chandler/Tim Jordan/Trey Coleman/Jeremy Banks.  We all know that Kelly could very easily decide to skip his final year for the NFL, but there is a really nice stable of SEC-level backs behind him.

So, assuming Grant signs elsewhere, it will be interesting to see what happens at the position.  The only other RB out there is C’Bo Flemister, a highly productive but relatively Georgia Tech commitment from South Georgia who put off signing yesterday specifically because Tennessee asked him to – he’ll be visiting in January.  Other than him, the board is pretty empty, so we’ll know really quickly if the staff wants another RB in the class by whether or not they start putting out new offers.

WR
With Alontae Taylor back in the fold and an early enrollee, the only decision Tennessee was waiting on was that of JUCO product Jaron Woodyard (also an early enrollee and a Nebraska commitment who OV’d to Knoxville last weekend).  Ultimately Woodyard decided to stick with the Cornhuskers, which means that the bulk of the WR class will come in February.  The good news is that the current board contains four very high level prospect, with more offers likely to go out in short order:

Jacob Copeland; Copeland is a former UF commitment who has been considered a Bama lean for a while.  However, he loves Pruitt and was blown away on his Tennessee OV this past weekend.  The bad news of course is that there is a lot of time between that OV and February’s NSD, and Copeland intends to take more OVs.  That said, the Vols have put themselves in a strong position.  Copeland is a stud and would be worth whatever effort the staff has to put in here.

Nikko Hall/Chris Olave/Geordon Porter – Three California playmakers, one of whom (Hall, formerly coached by Casey Clausen) is definitely planning on taking a Tennessee OV in January.  The other two have OVs left to use, so it will be interesting to see if UT can get any traction here.  Having fellow Californians JT Shrout and Dominick Wood-Anderson and Jordan Allen in the fold could be a big help with these and any other West Coast prospects the staff should decide to take a swing at.

TE

We discussed Tennessee’s coup gaining the signature from Dominick Wood-Anderson, the nation’s #1 JUCO TE yesterday.  Pairing Wood-Anderson with longtime commit and local star Jacob Warren means the TE position has received a much needed injection of talent.  We also discussed the ramifications for Glenn Beal, a Jumbo ATH who could play both TE and DE and took his OV to Knoxville this past weekend.  Interestingly, Beal tweeted last night that he is thinking about signing early.  The guess here is that were that come to pass it would be either Tennessee (his only OV) or LSU (home state school and where he’s visited multiple times).  We shall see here…

OL

After signing Tanner Antonutti, Ollie Lane and ESD commitment and fellow instater Jerome Carvin, the Vols have a nice base of talent for an OL class that needed to have quantity and quality, and still needs more of both.  And after outstanding OVs this past weekend, the Vols are strong favorites for both Giancarlo Valentin and Jahmir Johnson, two highly rated JUCO products (who coincidentally were high school teammates).  Both plan on taking more visits between now and NSD, but Tennessee is in great position for both.  The staff has zeroed in on these and I expect them to expend every effort necessary to land them.

These guys, along with Carvin in particular, project as instant contributors and would solidify the 2018 OL for the Vols.  They would also allow Antonutti and Lane the necessary redshirt year to develop and be ready to contribute in 2019 and beyond.

DL

With a really nice DL haul that included three early enrollees in DE Jordan Allen (JUCO) and Greg Emerson and Kingston Harris along with highly regarded instate DT Brant Lawless, the Vols have a nice group of early signees at a position where you always need more bodies and more talent.  Tennessee also still holds a commitment from instate 4-star D’Andre Litaker.  However, his situation appears to be in limbo and the new staff evaluates him and the overall position, and how they proceed here will be something to keep an eye on.

Malik Langham – A longtime Tennesse target, Langham appears to be down to Alabama and UT, with Notre Dame, where he’s already taken an OV, trying to hang around and UF scheduled for an OV. Langham has been to campus quite a bit, including this fall for the South Carolina game; however, in order to solidify its position Tennessee will have to secure one of his two remaining OVs.  I do expect that to happen, but this one will be another Pruitt vs. Saban battle that goes to the wire.

Coynis Miller – Massive Auburn DT commit, Miller is very talented and a perfect NG fit in Pruitt’s 3-4.  He was scheduled to OV to Knoxville last weekend but did not come – whether he cancelled or rescheduled is unknown right now, but not signing with AU yesterday leads one to believe he’s not completely sold on the Tigers.  Alabama is pushing here too.  He has a great relationship with new Tennessee coach Chris Rumph, which should keep the Vols in it here.  If he reschedules the OV you can count the Vols as a real player here; if not, you can obviously scratch him off.

There does not appear to be much traction with Michael Williams, a Jumbo ATH from Louisiana with offers from LSU and Bama among others who got a quick offer from Pruitt.  We’ll see if that changes in the coming weeks.  In contrast, Javonte Jean Baptiste, a long and lean (6-5, 215) edge rusher with a great frame who hails from the same high school as Jarrett Guarantano, does not appear to have gotten much attention from the new staff.  He did have the Vols in his Top 4 with BC, Virgina Tech and UCF and was actually scheduled to OV for the Vandy game, so if Pruitt and Co. want to get involved I think they can, but they’ll need to move quickly.  I like his game and think he’d be an interesting fit in Pruitt’s 3-4.

I think DL is a position where we’ll see some new offers go out, but Langham and Miller in particular look like the staff’s top targets.

LB

JJ Peterson – A longtime Bama lean, Peterson recently said that the Vols are now his leader.  This is almost 100% due to Pruitt, who he is very close with.  It of course doesn’t hurt that he plays for Pruitt mentor Rush Propst, is from GA so knows Sherrer, and also that UT is now home to two former Colquitt Co players in Jaquan Blakely and Shawn Shamburger.  This will be a knock down drag out fight and one that could yield a crown jewel of the class should Tennessee win out.

Quay Walker- He’s not only close with Pruitt but also is being heavily recruited by UGA (Sherrer).  UGA tried hard to get him to flip and sign yesterday, but he held off and now is fully in play.  Auburn is also a player here, so the Vols are treading in deep waters, which is where you want and can expect this staff to traffic

Javeon Becton – Former UGA commit from current Vol Eric Crosby’s HS, Becton is a pass rusher who knows Sherrer well.  He got a recent Tennessee offer and is very nterested – in fact, he was in Knoxville for the UGA game in late September so he’s been to campus once already.  Virginia Tech is the other big player here

Caleb Tannor – Georgia dropped Caleb Tannor over academic concerns, but it sounds like he will have a chance to qualify. With Auburn missing on Andres Fox, they could very well zero in on Tannor, who initially chose the Bulldogs over the Tigers. Tannor liked the Vols a lot back in the summer before committing to the Dawgs and has been on campus a few times including recently for the LSU game.  Tannor is a really good prospect who I think deserves attention from the new staff given the need for pass rushers.  We’ll see if either side reaches out

Otis Reese – More of a 3-4 ILB, and a very talented one at that, the Michigan commit from GA has had a ton of interest in UGA and Bama, where Sherrer and Pruitt were his respective recruiters of record.  I’ve admittedly not heard of anything going on here but on paper he seems like a guy who would get a quick call from the staff today to gauge interest after not signing yesterday

DB

With zero DBs signed or committed, and with a huge need at the position, one can expect Pruitt and DB Coach Terry Fair to spend a lot of time and energy trying to land some elite prospects.  The good news is that they’ve already laid a lot of good groundwork with a number of highly talented prospects:

Olaijah Griffin – A Top 50 overall player in the class, Griffin had an outstanding OV to Knoxville this past weekend that instantly marked Tennessee as a strong contender for this elite prospect.  Interestingly, Griffin has quite a bit of family in East Tennessee and his uncle actually accompanied him on his official visit, so there is clearly a comfort level here.  As one would expect for a player of this caliber, this will be a fight, and USC, Auburn, Michigan and of course UCLA will battle until the ink dries here.

Isaac Taylor-Stuart: Another big-timer from CA who’s been considering Alabama for a longtime, Stuart got an immediate offer from the new staff and instantly inserted the Vols into his Top 6 alongside the Tide, UGA, USC and Texas A&M (where he’s already OV’d).  Like Griffin, Stuart-Taylor is a hyper-talented prospect and would be an instant contributor in Knoxville, and if he follows through on his stated intention to OV to Knoxville the Vols will be firmly in the mix

Eddie Smith – After decommitting from TCU after a quick offer from Pruitt, the Louisiana native fits the Pruitt mold of long CBs and is obviously incredibly talented when you watch his film.  He also trains with former Vol JJ McClesky and is close with 2017 Vol signee Cheyenne Labruzza.  He will likely set up a January OV to Knoxville pretty quickly and you can, in my opinion, almost pencil him in to the class

Rayshad Williams – A Vandy commitment from Memphis, Williams did not sign yesterday and therefore I’d consider his recruitment wide open.  He’s had interest in Tennessee for a long time but committed to Vanderbilt when UT didn’t come through with a firm offer.  There have long been questions as to whether the 6’3 prospect is a CB or a S, but there is no doubt he’s talented and the new staff seems to like him more than the former. He got a visit form a UT staffer in December and I’d expect him to set up an OV to Knoxville for January.

Roger McCreary – Former South Alabama commitment who is now heavily considering homestate Auburn as well as the Vols after receiving offers.  One would think he’s AU’s to lose, but he does have an OV scheduled to Knoxville on January 26th.  If he makes it that far he could be one to watch

Benjie Franklin – The most recent CB offer, Franklin is a JUCO product who’s getting more and more interest.  Auburn has also just offered and will likely be a factor.  I’m not sure where Franklin sits on the Tennessee board (or others’), so his recruitment will likely be impacted by how schools do with other prospects

Vernon Jackson – Another Jumbo ATH, Jackson profiles as a big Safety who can really run.  He’s a Bama commit but didn’t sign yesterday and despite heavy interest in/from Texas A&M I think he might be one who gets a quick call from Pruitt today.

Breaking: Vols Land Nation’s #1 JUCO Tight End Dominick Wood-Anderson

Tennessee pulled off a stunner Tuesday afternoon, swooping in and landing a signature from Dominick Wood-Anderson, the nation’s #1 JUCO Tight End and a recruit coveted by blueblood programs across the country.  Thought to be a strong Alabama lean, Wood-Anderson took what was undoubtedly a tremendous visit to Knoxville this past weekend and decided he wanted to be part of what Jeremy Pruitt is building at Tennessee.

“DWA” is without a doubt a plug and play starter at a position of need in Tyson Helton’s pro-style offense and where the current roster has real deficiencies.  As an early enrollee he’ll jump right in for spring practice and the expectation here is that he’ll be a star.  Pairing him with longtime commit and local star Jacob Warren means Pruitt has done yeoman’s work at a real position of need.

What that means for Glenn Beal remains to be seen.  Beal is a huge kid with experience both being an inline blocking TE and getting out in the passing game, and is a high level SEC recruit coveted by LSU and Alabama among others.  He took his OV to Knoxville this past weekend and has been silent since – he’s by all accounts he’s a quiet kid, but that’s rarely a great sign.  That said, with two TEs already in the barn and needs elsewhere who knows if he is a take for the Vols; however, given his size/skill level and potential ability to play DE, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the staff keep recruiting Beal until NSD.

The signing of Wood-Anderson is the strongest sign yet of what Jeremy Pruitt and this staff can do on the recruiting trail.  With more time to build relationships the imagination runs wild thinking what might be next…

Tennessee Vols Early Signing Period: Shrout, Banks, Carvin Pledge

Tennessee would have liked to hit a home run today as the first ever early signing period kicked off, but thanks to a coaching change and a short window for new head man Jeremy Pruitt, UT will have to settle for a ground-rule double.

Several notable junior college linemen elected to sign elsewhere Wednesday, but Tennessee still wound up with some major wins at key positions of need. They’re positioning themselves for a huge month of January that will require a whirlwind, a lot of swings at high-profile recruits and ultimately equal parts excitement and disappointment.

Wednesday appears to be a microcosm of that. The biggest loss was LSU commit and massive offensive lineman Badara Traore, who visited Knoxville last weekend and probably would have been a Day One starter. Instead, he chose to stick with the Tigers, with whom he’d built a long-term relationship.

Pruitt’s frantic jaunt toward the finish line will include plenty of wins and losses, but UT fans excited about the future of the Pruitt regime should focus on the wins. Tennessee has already received signings from punter Paxton Brooks, offensive lineman Ollie Lane, defensive lineman Kingston Harris, and offensive lineman Tanner Antonutti, offensive tackle Jerome Carvin, quarterback JT Shrout, and running back Jeremy Banks, and also expects receiver Alontae Taylor, defensive lineman Greg Emerson,  tight end Jacob Warren, and defensive lineman Brant Lawless to sign as well.

We’ll have expanded capsules on everyone in the coming days here on Gameday on Rocky Top, but for now, let’s take a look at some of the big wins already today.

Jerome Carvin, 6’4″, 330-pound offensive tackle Memphis (Cordova HS)

It stung to the core for Tennessee not to ultimately get the signature of 5-star stud legacy Cade Mays, but landing Carvin helped ease that pain tremendously.

Carvin was thought to be leaning to Mississippi State still, even though Dan Mullen left for Florida. He almost certainly would have signed with the Bulldogs had Mullen stayed, and the coach tried to recruit him to Florida. But Pruitt has recruited Carvin heavily since arriving at UT.

Though Carvin couldn’t get a trip to Knoxville last weekend, he has a long-standing relationship with the university as a long-time target. He’s been there before, and he’s been considering the Vols for a long time. When buddy and teammate Jeremy Banks decided on Tennessee, it made sense for Carvin to go, too.

He’s a big, brawny lineman who can step right in and compete for playing time on a porous unit. Carvin isn’t an elite prospect, but he has the size and strength to be a very good one. Once he learns footwork and mechanics, such as hand placement and a dropstep, he’ll be a good one. He’s going to get some great coaching from Will Friend, too.

JT Shrout, 6’3″, 190-pound quarterback Newhall, California (William S. Hart HS)

Tennessee got its man.

Although Pruitt and Co. tried to hang onto Adrian Martinez despite him not being an ideal fit for what he and Tyson Helton want to do offensively (Helton didn’t recruit him to USC), he ultimately signed with Nebraska on Wednesday.

Pruitt offered another Cali quarterback, and he’s one-for-one in offers/commits. The Vols got a last-minute visit from Shrout last weekend, he said he had an “outstanding” visit and ultimately decommitted from the Bears last night and chose Tennessee today. That’s a testament to what kind of recruiting this staff is capable of, especially considering Shrout had been committed to Cal since last summer.

It took Pruitt a week to swing him, and the lure of playing SEC ball at a big-time program was too much to pass up.

Shrout has all the tools, including pristine mechanics and a live arm. He’s got the size, and though he needs to add weight, he has the frame to do so. Obviously, his 25 interceptions a year ago is a major red flag, but he’s got coachable attributes. They’ll have to teach the kid discernment, but he is a pro-style quarterback, and it looks like that’s the type of offense UT wants to run.

So, that gives him a leg up potentially on the other underclassmen on Tennessee’s roster.

Jeremy Banks, 6’2″, 216-pound running back, Memphis (Cordova HS)

With schools such as Nebraska, UCLA, Miami, Iowa State and Florida knocking down his door, it’s hard to understand why Banks was never on Tennessee’s radar with the previous staff.

Pruitt prioritized the big back since coming on, and the Vols parlayed that love into a commitment from the in-state product. He and Carvin make two big pledges from the Volunteer State.

With the Vols already set with smaller, speedier backs in Ty Chandler, Tim Jordan and Carlin Fils-aime, they needed a load-carrier. Banks looks like that guy. Though UT commitment Anthony Grant won’t be part of this class, Pruitt decided to go in a different direction with who he thought would be an every-down type guy. He quickly zeroed in on Banks (a 247Sports composite 3-star player who is a 4-star on Rivals).

Banks visited last weekend rather than go to Florida, and he came away from Rocky Top knowing that’s where he wanted to spend the rest of his amateur career. He’s a big coup for UT in a relationship that was built quickly but firmly.

Reading the Tennessee Tea Leaves: Vols Looking Good for Quarterback JT Shrout

What wound up being a surprise visit from a “mystery” quarterback last weekend appears as though it will manifest itself as a Tennessee quarterback commitment.

JT Shrout, a 6’3″, 190-pound quarterback from William S. Hart High School in Newhall, California, and a one-time California Bears commitment was going to choose between UT and Cal tomorrow.

On Tuesday night, he officially decommitted from coach Justin Wilcox’s Bears, according to his official Twitter account. This seems to be good news for Tennessee.

Though Shrout threw for 3,064 yards as a senior, he tossed an eye-popping 25 interceptions to go along with 27 touchdown passes. He’s still the No. 26 pro-style quarterback in the nation, according to 247Sports.

After an injury forced him to miss much of his high school career, this season was his first to start. Yes, he threw far too many interceptions, but folks everywhere are enamored with his upside, too.

Back in July, Yahoo.com’s Pete Thamel — he of the Tennessee bashing during the Greg Schiano debacle — wrote about the unheralded prospect:

But it’s safe to project Shrout, a 6-foot-3, 190-pound rising senior, as one of the biggest steals of the 2018 recruiting class. That was the consensus of coaches at the QB Collective, including one NFL coordinator who told Yahoo Sports that Shrout was by far the most polished prospect there. Shrout wowed all the coaches with his technical precision, polished footwork and smooth throwing motion. “I think of all the quarterbacks who were here, if I were an NFL general manager or quarterback coach, [he’d be] the guy who could step in on day one and fundamentally work within an NFL system,” said Sage Rosenfels, a longtime NFL backup who works as private quarterback coach in the Omaha area. “His drop was smooth. His fundamentals were very efficient and he throws a great ball.”

That’s a testament to the type of offense the Vols want to run under offensive coordinator Tyson Helton. It’s obvious this will be a pro-spread style that will utilize multiple receivers in West Coast route trees, feature running the football and downfield passing. It’s time to get back to real football, folks.

This is a vital piece to Tennessee’s puzzle, and the Vols really need him to pull the trigger, especially after Adrian Martinez flipped to Nebraska and UT cut Michael Penix loose to sign elsewhere. Shrout would be the only quarterback in Tennessee’s 2018 class, and he will be able to step right in and compete with Jarrett Guarantano, Quinten Dormady and Will McBride.

Shrout is an unfinished product, but he is the type of moldable piece for Helton. If he winds up choosing the Vols tomorrow, it will be a nice pickup. He has all the tools.

 

Don’t Let Tennessee’s Early Signing Day Fool You

 

Don’t look at the recruiting rankings right now.

No, I mean it. Don’t. Please.

A Tennessee recruiting class that once climbed as high as third nationally before coach Butch Jones’ fiefdom came crashing down, the lull in leadership broke down relationships and the administration botched the coaching search [though may have landed the hire] is currently in shambles.

If you’ve patronized the message boards lately or read Twitter, you’d think Tennessee’s class has collapsed around new head coach Jeremy Pruitt. That’s not so. At all. Local writer Mike Griffith even went as far today as to say Pruitt is “struggling.” That’s laughable.

It’s not a great look yet again for UT that it had favorite son and recruiting organizer extraordinaire Austin Thomas stole from LSU before a deal fell through. It was unfortunate for the Vols that Chris Weinke was set to leave Alabama with Pruitt to come to UT before his alma mater Florida State came calling.

But don’t look at this incomplete recruiting class and judge Pruitt’s body of work. It’s very much a work in progress. He couldn’t develop relationships before this early signing period where players can sign tomorrow, and he couldn’t help that some of the elite players who were once committed have a frontrunner mentality and dropped the Vols.

It’s been a perfect storm that’s caused the Vols to plummet out of the recruiting rankings.

When Tennessee was recruiting under Jones, the Vols enjoyed highly ranked classes yet failed to develop that talent. It’s not uncommon to look at UT players as seniors who didn’t progress much from their freshman seasons. We all know now Jones struggled to elevate players’ talent once they arrived on campus.

Did you ever think part of that was the type of player Jones recruited, though?

I’m not knocking any of the current kids on Tennessee’s roster, but it’s clear that Jones recruited to a certain system — a system he called “infallible” — and that system failed famously, especially once Joshua Dobbs left for Pittsburgh. When Pruitt came in [finally] to coach the Vols, he took one look at UT’s class and basically gave a metaphorical shrug and a “meh.”

Then, the culling ensued.

Yes, Tennessee absolutely would have loved to land 5-star offensive lineman Cade Mays, a Knoxville Catholic player whose father was a standout. But he decided to go in a different direction, no matter how much Pruitt and UT coach Phillip Fulmer tried to sway him otherwise. It’s going to hurt seeing him playing for Clemson or Georgia next year, but nothing Pruitt could have done would sway him.

Absolutely, the Vols were happy with 4-star quarterback and Cali prospect Adrian Martinez coming to Knoxville, even though he didn’t play at all last year and isn’t an ideal fit for the pro-style offense coordinator Tyson Helton wants to run. But when Scott Frost arrived at Nebraska and made Martinez a priority, he fell in love with that new system in Lincoln. Honestly, he’s a better fit for what they want to do, even though he would have been a heck of a quarterback at UT potentially.

The rest of the players were guys Pruitt just didn’t think fit the system. Florida quarterback Michael Penix will land at a quality program, but he is more of a dual-threat kid, and Tennessee didn’t prefer him. Better to be up front and honest with guys than have them take up a scholarship spot that can be used elsewhere, have them unhappy and quit. Who wants that?

Do I understand Pruitt cutting a guy loose like Jamarcus Chatman and then getting a commitment from Kingston Harris, a defensive lineman who struggled to find the field as a senior at prestigious IMG Academy? Nope. But I know he’s a big body with a bunch of potential, and if anybody knows the kind of players he needs to run the type of 3-4 defense Pruitt employed at Alabama, Florida State and Georgia that won championships, it’s the man who shaped those units.

Why are we grinding our teeth that Pruitt saw a Jones class and disassembled it? Last I checked, Pruitt is coaching in the College Football Playoffs; Jones is sitting at home after his team went 4-8. And Mays [as well as Jaycee Horn, who just committed to South Carolina] are guys who decommitted on Jones’ watch, long before Pruitt came into the picture.

The Vols already went after another quarterback — California commitment JT Shrout — who will choose between UT and the Golden Bears tomorrow. If you look at his senior season stats, you will cringe. He threw 27 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. Yikes. But he is 6’3″, a traditional dropback passer with pristine mechanics that have NFL scouts already excited, according to Yahoo.com’s Pete Thamel.

Tennessee will be watching instate offensive lineman Jerome Carvin, his teammate 4-star running back Jeremy Banks and Shrout, among others, tomorrow. If a couple of those guys pull the trigger, it could set the stage for a big finish for Pruitt and the Vols.

Pruitt had exactly one recruiting weekend to prepare for [remember, he was announced mere days before getting Alontae Taylor back on campus, and he recommitted]. With a week to prepare for that day, Pruitt went JUCO-heavy on the visits, and we’ll see if any of them pay off with pledges tomorrow. UT certainly needs immediate help, especially on both lines and in the secondary.

Pruitt’s staff believes it can get in on some big names after the early signing period. The nation’s second-ranked outside linebacker J.J. Petersen has had Alabama at the top of his list forever, but Pruitt is his lead recruiter with the Crimson Tide. He told SEC Country this week that UT now leads. If Pruitt can convince some of those guys he’s already built relationships with when he was with the Tide to follow him to Tennessee, the Vols could land a few.

Also, it remains to be seen who Pruitt will hire in his last three assistant spots. Will one of them be South Carolina wide receivers coach and elite recruiter Bryan McClendon, as rumored? Pruitt knows recruiting is the name of the game in the SEC, and he’ll get somebody who can be relentless on the trail. Whoever that is could bring with him targets, too.

And [hold your nose, Vols fans] if Alabama looks good in the playoffs and Pruitt’s defense shines, it will be good publicity for UT, and some positive vibes could come the way of Tennessee’s recruiting class still. There’s still a month-plus for Pruitt to build relationships once he gets on campus for good. That’s not a ton of time, but it is enough with some preexisting relationships to get some guys on campus and signed.

This class isn’t going to wind up a high-riser in the least, but the Vols could fill some needs, and if it gets in the top 20 with all the turmoil that’s transpired, it’ll be OK. Pruitt is going to build things his way. We don’t know if that’s a winning way because he’s never led a program, but he has won a lot of championships as an assistant.

So, tomorrow, when all the excitement is happening and Mays makes his choice to go somewhere other than Knoxville and the Vols wind up with some guys who weren’t even on the radar a week ago, don’t get down. This is only the beginning of the Pruitt era, and with what Jones left UT, it isn’t an overnight fix.

Pruitt is going to do it his way. And as he said in his press conference, Vols fans shouldn’t worry about the guys they don’t get but the ones they do.

Aight?

 

What Did We Learn?

This loss hurts in the feels; in an environment like Sunday’s there is no other option in defeat. And that’s good:  the first ranked match-up in Thompson-Boling Arena since 2010 produced the close game we should expect from such an encounter, and the inevitable pain from losing it. In falling short (and especially falling short in the final minutes due to a pair of preventable turnovers), Tennessee missed the chance to make a memory for a younger generation of students and basketball fans.

But what hurts in the feels often finds its way to recovery in our heads. My head tells me the biggest takeaway from Sunday’s game isn’t the missed opportunity, but the way Tennessee gave themselves one. Yesterday’s performance against North Carolina proves earlier ones against Villanova and Purdue were no fluke. Tennessee has played three of the top eight teams in the nation (in KenPom). They led North Carolina for 37 minutes before falling by five. They beat Purdue while playing from behind throughout the first half and the first two minutes of overtime. And they led Villanova by 15 early and were still within three in the final minute of an eventual nine-point loss.

Don’t undervalue that Purdue win. Villanova is the number one team in the polls and the best team in the nation by a healthy margin in KenPom. But Purdue (sixth) is better than North Carolina (eighth) in the latter metric. And Tennessee made huge plays in the final minutes of regulation and overtime to win that game. “Tennessee can’t get it done against great teams,” isn’t the story. In three Top 10 match-ups the Vols are 1-2 with real opportunities to be 3-0.

This team is no fluke and no flash in the pan. In those three games Tennessee shot 36.3% against Purdue, 45.3% against Villanova, and 37.3% against North Carolina while going a combined 24-of-68 (35.2%) from the arc. These games haven’t been close because the Vols have been on fire. Tennessee hasn’t been lucky. The Vols are simply playing good enough basketball on both ends of the floor to give themselves a chance to win against the best teams in the country. That’s a real sentence in year three under Rick Barnes.

Tennessee hosts Furman (KenPom #134) on Wednesday, then has a pair of non-conference games remaining:  at Wake Forest (KenPom #65) on Saturday, and at Iowa State (KenPom #59) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge in January. Split those games and go .500 in the SEC, and you’re 18-12 with a Top 50 RPI headed to the SEC Tournament. But Tennessee has played well enough to expect more than a, “Can we make the tournament?” conversation.

The SEC will test Tennessee’s consistency. But I don’t believe their ceiling to be any lower today than it was before tip-off yesterday; if anything, the ceiling is reinforced. Tennessee isn’t just playing with the best teams in college basketball, it’s giving itself a chance to win. The Vols beat Purdue, were within one possession of Villanova in the final minute, and gave away an opportunity to beat North Carolina. But there is nothing but opportunity in front of this team.

Visit Weekend Preview: The Last Weekend Before the Early Signing Period

Although this coming weekend will be the second official visit weekend of Coach Jeremy Pruitt’s tenure, it will be the first one that features numerous uncommitted prospects.  And with a list incredibly long on both talent and, due to the number of JUCO players, experience, it’s an incredibly important one.  The new early signing period makes it that much more important, because for some players it’s their last visit before they make a final decision on where they’ll sign in just one week, while for others it’s Tennessee’s final on-campus chance to make a big impression with just under one more month (and likely trips to see other schools) until the second and final signing day.  In a welcome stroke of luck, Thompson-Boiling Arena will have 20,000 screaming Volunteers packed in as they root on the Basketball Vols vs. UNC.  Those kind of things are small, but showing kids, especially who aren’t from the South like many of the incoming prospects, how rabid this fanbase is, always helps.

Below is a quick look at this weekend’s visitors:

Confirmed commitments for the weekend

Jacob Warren/Ollie Lane – Warren and Lane are longstanding local commitments who plan on signing in December and enrolling in January.  Both are solid prospects who ideally would redshirt in 2018.  However, given the dearth of bodies and proven depth at their respective positions both could be in line for snaps in their freshmen season should they take advantage of being in for Spring Practice and summer workouts.  With the large number of uncommitted prospects on campus it will be good to have All Orange guys helping peer recruit

Important Unofficial Visitor

OL Jerome Carvin – Pending logistical details being worked out, Carvin is trying to get back to Knoxville for another visit after taking his OV back in late September for the UGA game.  While it will obviously be much better if he can make it, his desire to do so (especially in lieu of previous plans to try and get to UF) is a great sign.  If he can make it in I think he’s on Commitment Watch.  If not we might have to wait a few more days, but I still think this is trending towards the good guys

Confirmed Uncommitted Official Visitors

All of the remaining confirmed official visitors are prospects the new staff has either offered or reoffered – regardless, they are all players the prior staff was not involved with.  We discussed the status of their respective recruitments in this piece, and suffice it to say that the Vols would very likely take a commitment from almost any and all of them if they get the chance. The group is a good mix of high school players and JUCOs, and each of them play at a position of need.

Uncommitted: December Signees Confirmed for this Weekend

OL Badara Traore – #1 JUCO OL and current LSU commit, this is a new development but one that makes some sense.  He’s not only teammates with Johncarlo Valentin (below) but as an LSU commit he’s also got ties to new UT staffer Austin Thomas, former GM for the Tigers.  Assuming he follows through with the visit, and you can be sure LSU will do everything they can to stop it, one has to think UT has a great shot here.  One other side note is that LSU has just hired a brand new (albeit well regarded) OL coach, which means Traore has no better relationship with his position coach there than he does with UT coach Will Friend

RB Jeremy Banks – Teammates with Jerome Carvin, Banks would be a big add at the RB position due to his size and production.  He’s on my Commitment Watch list

RB Greg Bell – One of FOUR teammates from Arizona Western C.C. coming in this weekend, two of which are December signees and early enrollees.  UT’s biggest competition appears to be Nebraska, where he has already OV’d along with Louisville (where has was committed), Boise, and Utah.  His is an interesting situation, as it is unclear how tied together these four teammates’ recruitments are.  At the same time, Tennessee’s only current RB commitment, Anthony Grant, is far from solid (he’s OV’ing Virginia Tech this weekend), so how many RBs the staff is going to take it up in the air.  All things equal my preference for one RB spot would be for Banks over Bell, but there are likely a lot of things happening in the background…

WR Jaron Woodyard – Another of the quartet from AWCC, Woodyard is actually committed to Nebraska but will be taking his trip to Knoxville this weekend anyway.  Numbers are WR are fluid – with Alontae Taylor back in the fold there is still room for at least 1-2 more, but the pecking order is unknown.  Copeland (below) is a clear take, but that recruitment is likely to go into late January.  Is Shocky Jacques-Louis (also an early enrollee) back in play after Pruitt and Helton were in his home last night?  Like Bell, how much does Woodyard play into the recruitment of his teammates?  As The Dude would say, lotta ins, lotta outs…

TE Dominick Wood-Anderson – A true national recruit, Wood-Anderson is regarded as an instant impact TE prospect and is highly coveted by the likes of Alabama, Texas A&M and Jimbo Fisher, and other bluechip programs.  He’s the jewel of the AWCC Four, and landing him might be a stretch – just getting him on campus represents a pretty big coup, this one orchestrated by new staffer (brought by Pruitt from Alabama) Brian Niedermayer.  However, it’s 100% worth the effort, and he’s an instant starter if he signs with the Vols, a selling point Pruitt and Co. will be hammering home all weekend.

Uncommitted: February Signees Confirmed for this Weekend

Each of the players below are high value targets, not just because of their talent but also because each of them play positions where there is a big need on Tennessee’s roster.  The list below is a mix of high school and JUCO prospects, most of whom we’ve taken a look at in the linked piece above.  As noted, it’s imperative that the Vols make a very big impression on these prospects, as each of them will wait until February to sign.

WR Jacob Copeland

OL Jahmir Johnson

OL Johncarlo Valentin

TE Glenn Beal

DE Kingston Harris*

CB Olaijah Griffin*

*Two relatively new offers

Harris is a DL from IMG Academy in Florida with a decent offer list who Pruitt just offered and is immediately coming to Knoxville for an OV.  My guess is that he’s lower on the board, but we’ll see

Griffin is a borderline 5-star CB from California who received an immediate offer from the staff, has seen Nidermayer in his home, and is now going to be on campus this weekend.  Interestingly, Griffin has a lot of family in East TN and has spent quite a bit of time in the area, so he’s not the typical Cali kid for whom the likelihood of leaving the West Coast is ultraslim.  He’d be a bigtime get, and although he’s probably not going to commit on the spot if the Vols can make a big impression this weekend they could find themselves in the mix for the next month

Tennessee vs North Carolina Preview

It’s been six years since Tennessee played a game like this, seven since they played one in Knoxville. Let’s go.

Relax about the MiG.

RPI Forecast gives Tennessee an 88.9% chance to finish with 19 or more regular season wins. Their projections shouldn’t be taken as gospel today, but become more reliable every night. A 19-11 finish projects to an RPI of 36 headed to the SEC Tournament. That dances.

Tennessee can already check the boxes next to strength of schedule, quality wins, and road/neutral wins. The SEC is first in conference RPI, has eight teams in Ken Pomeroy’s Top 50 and the entire league in the Top 85. Plus seven SEC schools in the December 9 Bracket Matrix update, where the Vols are a five seed.

Relax. Almost every night of conference play will provide an opportunity. This one isn’t about March. Like Villanova, this is about Tennessee’s ceiling.

The Defending Champs

North Carolina was 27-7 heading to March, fought off a stiff challenge from Arkansas in the second round, then beat Kentucky by two in the Elite Eight and Oregon by one in the Final Four. It wasn’t easy, but the Tar Heels cut down the nets by beating Gonzaga in the title game. Justin Jackson and Tony Bradley became first round draft picks, but plenty of talent returns; several Tar Heels have made the most of expanded minutes.

That’s especially true for Luke Maye. He averages a double-double at 19.9 points and 10.5 rebounds. Joel Berry, who did not play against the Vols last season, is second on the team in scoring at 16.0 points per game. Kenny Williams adds 13.4 points and 55% shooting from the arc, and Theo Pinson averages 9.4 points and 4.4 assists per game. Those four do the majority of the heavy lifting for Carolina, all averaging between 28-32 minutes per game.

They’ll come to Knoxville 9-1 and no fan of close games. The lone blemish came via #4 Michigan State: the Tar Heels shot 24.6% from the floor and 1-of-18 from the arc in a 63-45 loss in the Phil Knight tournament. In every other game, North Carolina has shot better than 47% and scored at least 85 points.

That includes a 19-point win over Arkansas (#30 KenPom) and a 15-point win over Michigan (#36 KenPom). In their only true road game before this weekend, Carolina beat Stanford (#110 KenPom) by 24.

Like us, with more talent

Last year Tennessee led by 15 in the first half before an avalanche of offensive rebounds buried them in the second. Tony Bradley had seven of those in 20 minutes; this time around the match-up should be more even.

It’s remarkable how similar the Vols and Tar Heels have been in the early going, having both faced enough competition to feel good about the sample size:

  • North Carolina is 34th in field goal percentage (49.5%) and 59th in field goal percentage defense (40.1%). Tennessee shoots 45.2% from the floor, leads the nation in assist percentage, and is 30th in field goal percentage defense (38.3%).
  • North Carolina is 42nd in three-point percentage (39.9%). Tennessee is 21st (41.2%). But neither team lives by the three:  UNC is 258th nationally in three-pointers attempted, UT 305th.
  • North Carolina plays through Luke Maye (6’8″, 240 lbs). Tennessee plays through Grant Williams (6’7″, 241 lbs).
  • These are two of the very best teams in the nation at defending inside the arc. North Carolina is 16th in two-point field goal percentage defense (41.6%), 32nd in blocked shots, and (like Villanova) does a great job defending without fouling: the Tar Heels are 21st nationally in opponent free throw attempts. The Vols are 7th in two-point field goal percentage defense (40.4%), and tied with Carolina for 32nd in blocked shots.
  • North Carolina is 27th in offensive rebounding percentage (36.6%). Tennessee is 45th (35.9%).
  • North Carolina’s only loss is to the number two team in KenPom. Tennessee’s only loss is to number one.

The biggest difference between us is tempo:  Carolina plays the 15th-fastest pace in college basketball. Tennessee isn’t slow at 117th, but has played a diverse set of opponents without being overly interested in dictating a faster pace. The Vols beat Lipscomb (12th in tempo) and Georgia Tech (343rd in tempo) in their last two games. Tennessee plays a much more balanced rotation, with seven players getting between 20-27 minutes. In their history of Roy Williams vs Rick Barnes, SB Nation’s Tar Heel Blog points out when Barnes’ teams have won, they usually beat Carolina at their own game:  crash the boards and score a bunch of points.

I expect the Vols to have an opportunity to get this thing done; Villanova looks like the best team in the country by a healthy margin right now, and Tennessee certainly had their moments then. North Carolina is certainly more talented, but Thompson-Boling will present an environment this version of the Tar Heels hasn’t seen just yet. It may simply happen that we get beat by a more talented team. But it may simply happen that the environment is enough to push a good Tennessee team to victory over a great opponent. The Vols also can’t let the atmosphere and the opportunity get them out of their own element; most of this roster knows it should have won this game last year, which should help in that department.

Sagarin’s predictor at RPI Forecast gives the Vols a 42% chance to win; ESPN’s BPI gives the Vols a 48% chance. We’ve come a long way in a short time. If Tennessee continues to share the basketball well on offense and defend at a high level on the other end, the Vols can get this done.

Sunday, 3:00 PM ET, ESPN. Go Vols.