Arguably one of the most upgraded positions since Head Coach Jeremy Pruitt took over, the Offensive Line has seen the following additions since the end of the 2017 season:
Alabama transfer C Brandon Kennedy
4-star OG/C Jerome Carvin
3-star three-to-play-three JUCO OT/OG Jahmir Johnson
3-star (with a Wisconsin offer) OG Ollie Lane
5-star OT Wanya Morris
5-star OT Darnell Wright
4-star OG/C Jackson Lampley
3-star (with FSU/Texas/Michigan offers) OG Chris Akporoghene
3-star OG Melvin McBride
Adding that two-year haul to emerging Redshirt Sophomore K’rojhn Calbert and experienced depth piece true Junior Riley Locklear (still with a redshirt available), the Vols have a very promising core at perhaps the most important position in football outside of Quarterback. Were former freshman All-American Trey Smith to return from injury in either 2019 or 2020 the future at the position would look even brighter.
Regardless of the outstanding job done by Pruitt and his staff upgrading the talent and depth at the position, there is still plenty left to do. In order to consistently compete at the highest levels and with the likes of Alabama and Georgia, Tennessee needs to continue to stack elite Offensive Line classes year after year, making the work done so far only a necessary foundation. Like most positions in the 2020 cycle, Tennessee has positioned itself well, albeit early, to sign that kind of class, getting multiple elite-level prospects on campus multiple times and putting itself in position to battle to the end with the kinds of programs it wants to legitimately compete with on the field.
OG/C Cooper Mays is a name that is obviously very familiar to Vol fans. The local product is not just the son of former Vol linemn Kevin Mays but also the brother of former Tennessee commitment and current Georgia OL starter Cade Mays. Cooper has made his own name though, becoming a very important target for Pruitt and Co. since they took over. Fresh off winning OL MVP at the Charlotte Rivals camp, Mays took his official visit to Tennessee for the Orange & White game, one of dozens of visits to campus for him. Although some thought that scheduling his OV was a sign of an imminent commitment to Tennessee, that didn’t happen. But it was nice to get him back to campus yet again, as Tennessee would love for him to be the foundational piece for the 2020 OL class. Worth noting is that Mays is very close friends with top Vol targets OL Tate Ratledge and DL Tyler Baron, so getting him in the boat would likely help with both of them as well. Mays visited for this past weekend’s Georgia’s spring game, and the Dawgs should be considered a threat due to his brother being there even as how hard they are currently recruiting him remains TBD.
OT Tate Ratledge – Arguably the top Offensive Tackle in the South and without a doubt one of the top OTs in the country, Ratledge is simply an elite player at one of the most important positions in football. Despite having grown up a Tennessee fan in a family of hardcore Tennessee fans, the Vols were third on his list as recently as 12 months ago. However, the departure of Alabama’s Offensive Line Coach Brent Key appears to have knocked the Tide virtually off of his list, and at the same time Coach Pruitt, OL Coach Will Friend, and OC Jim Chaney (who Ratledge was close with when he was at UGA) have led a surge for the Vols. This is a two-team race between the Vols and the instate Dawgs, with uber recruiter Sam Pittman singlehandedly keeping UGA in it. As noted above, Ratledge has become close with Cooper Mays as well as Vol QB commit Harrison Bailey, and that peer recruiting (by a potential linemate and QB, no less) along with the family ties could be hard for even Pittman to overcome. However, UGA surely won’t go away in this one, and in fact Tate was at Georgia’s spring game last weekend and is no stranger to that campus either. Ratledge is aiming for summer decision and will likely visit both campuses a least one more time, with one of the two schools coming away with a cornerstone prospect for its 2020 class
OT Javion Cohen – The Alabama prospect visited Tennessee in February and subsequently committed to South Carolina not long after. However, he’s since decommitted and has the Vols in his top group along with instate powers Alabama and Auburn (both of whom have offered). Cohen won the OL MP at the recent Rivals Camp in Atlanta, showing good power, quickness, and technique to go with a 280 pound frame that has plenty of room to add weight. Whether or not he’s truly willing to leave the state remains to be seen, but if he is Tennessee has positioned itself to be a player
OT/OG Chris Morris – The Memphis native – one of good number of Bluff City prospects who the Vols would like to sign in 2020 – has been to Tennessee’s campus three times: the 2018 Orange & White Game, the 2018 Alabama game, and then again in late January for a Junior Day. That said, he does seem to have a fondness for SEC West powers Alabama and Texas A&M, and Arkansas has done a nice job with him as well to this point. However, Morris is simply an elite talent and has become one of Coach Pruitt’s personal projects. Continuing to get him back on campus will be key, and should the Vols successfully do so they will likely find themselves near the top of his list until the end
OG Marcus Henderson – Another Memphis native who’s visited Knoxville three times since Pruitt took over, most recently in January. He’s got offers from Alabama, Auburn, and Ohio State among others, but right now it looks like regional SEC programs like Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Arkansas are recruiting him harder. Where he stands on Tennessee’s board is a bit unclear at the moment, with Mays and Ratledge clear top priorities and a few others likely higher than Henderson but tough battles. How his senior season goes will likely clear that up for the Vols as well as other programs
OT Paris Johnson – The 5-star Ohio State commitment is anything but a firm commit to the Buckeyes, as the coaching change in Columbus really seemed to loosen the ties between the parties. He’s been a traveling man all winter and spring, and among the many visits he’s taken have been once each to Knoxville both in January and March. He’s fresh off a vis to UGA for their spring game this past weekend and Sam Pittman has the Dawgs in the race here as well. Ultimately the Ohio native will be a tough pull for anyone, but he’s clearly got a fondness for the Vols and that likely will keep them in the race for as long as unless and until he decides to shut it down
OT Richard Leonard – Florida native who visited for the Orange & White Game and then immediately decommitted from Kentucky. Leonard is a priority for instate schools FSU and Miami (whose spring games he attended in the last few weeks also). He’s a good looking prospect for whom the Vols appear to be in the mix as his recruitment heads into the summer
OT Joshua Priebe – After receiving an offer from the Vols Priebe visited Tennessee in April and raved about his trip. However, the Michigan native recently received an offer from Ohio State, meaning he’s now got opportunities at each of the Big 10 powers including Michigan and Michigan State. Should he be willing to leave the region than the Vols will be a player. His visits this summer/fall will tell the tale
OG Xavier Hill – After taking an unofficial visit to Knoxville in February, Hill has the Vols among his top group along with Alabama, Auburn, and the instate Mississippi schools. He’s a very talented prospect from Olive Branch, which is right on the Memphis border and a spot where kids have left the state in the recent past. The Vols just offered 2022 teammate DL Walter Nolen, so perhaps the staff thinks they can make waves in that area
OG James Robinson – Robinson visited Knoxville with a couple of teammates in March and earned an offer, and the large (6-4, 315 pound) Guard also holds SEC offers from Missouri and Ole Miss along with Virginia Tech. He’s likely a bit down the board at the moment but is one to watch during the season
Notably, three prospects who many thoughts would be at the top of Vols OL board when the cycle began are no longer there, but for different reasons. Justin Rogers and Omari Thomas are both at the very top of Tennessee’s overall board, but both prefer to ultimately play, and therefore be recruited as, Defensive Lineman. Knoxville’s Bryn Tucker, once a top target for the Vols, committed to reigning national champion Clemson this winter after the Vols staff cooled on him coming off a less-than-impressive junior season. Time will tell if Pruitt and his staff made the right call essentially passing on a prospect in its own backyard that one of the top two programs in the country was happy to take very early in the process. The hope here is that it works out well for both parties.