With the 2018 season kicking off in just two weeks, it is apparent that new Coach Jeremy Pruitt has made great strides in attempting to rebuild his roster. He’s done it via numerous avenues: 1) Blue-chip instant impact JUCO prospects like TE Dominick Wood-Anderson and DL Emmitt Gooden; 2) Grad transfers OL Brandon Kennedy, RB Madre London, and QB Keller Chryst; 3) Late adds to the 2018 recruiting class that were either blue-chippers like CB Bryce Thompson or appear to be great evaluations like CB Treveon Flowers, WR Cedric Tillman, and DL Kurrot Garland among others. And while taking JUCOs and grad transfers can be a risk to your future rosters, some of those who Pruitt has brought in, like Kennedy, fellow OL Jahmir Johnson, and CB Kenneth George, have multiple years of eligibility. We’ll soon see how quickly that rebuilding pays off, as national consensus that Tennessee is going to struggle to improve over last season’s debacle stands in contrast to some quiet confidence among those in the program that this team can overachieve.
Regardless, this is a multi-year rebuild when it comes to getting Tennessee back in contention for championships, and the next step is the 2019 class. Last Friday’s commitment from 4-star Safety Jaylen Mccullough gives Tennessee 19 commitments, and the class is ranked near the Top 10 nationally, in the Top 5 of the SEC, and 2nd in the SEC East (behind UGA, who is #1 nationally). Considering Pruitt and his new staff are recruiting to a program that went 4-8 and was winless in the SEC last season, this is a feat worth noting regardless of the fact that it’s only mid-August. The class includes a high-end QB prospect, an impressive collection of talent along the both lines of scrimmage, and a handful of plug and play prospects at a variety of positions. How many more prospects the Vols can fit into this class is an open question, but the staff is absolutely recruiting like numbers are not a concern at this time.
Sitting on these 19 commitments, Tennessee is in an enviable spot as it attempts to fill out the rest of its class. Having put itself in good position for numerous elite recruits, and with relatively few spots to fill, the Vols can be both picky and targeted. As September rolls around and the dead period ends and the 2018 season begins, it’s time to take a look at where Tennessee’s board stands with just a handful of spots remaining.
Tier I: The Top 10
OL Darnell Wright: Wright is an elite OT prospect who would, along with fellow 5-star prospect and current Tennessee commitment Wanya Morris, make up one of the best OT pairings signed nationally in a long time. The Vols look to be in strong position for Wright heading into the season – he and his family have made multiple visits to campus this spring/summer and he’s scheduled to come back for an unofficial visit for the Florida game before taking an official visit later on, and his coach is a big Tennessee fan to boot. Alabama is likely the biggest competition and they won’t be an easy out, but as of now the Vols are in a good spot, with distance playing a not-insignificant factor. Adding Wright to Morris, Brad Lampley and Chris Akproroghene would solidify Tennessee’s Offensive Line for the next few years, as the Vols have quietly added some really nice young pieces over the last few classes
ILB Quarvaris Crouch: Simply an elite athlete who also happens to be a bigtime football player, Crouch is rated in the Top 10 nationally for a reason. He could reasonably project at a number of positions, but ILB in Tennessee’s 3-4 scheme is probably his best bet. He’s been rehabbing a leg injury that has kept him off the road more than most prospects these days, but he did manage to get to Knoxville three times since Pruitt took the reins. FSU, Alabama, and a few other heavy hitters are involved here, but the Vols are absolutely major players. The staff would love to get him back unofficially for at least one game this fall, and he’s been quiet enough that following his visits could be the right move in terms of tracking his leaderboard
OLB Khris Bogle: Every team needs a devastating pass-rusher off the edge, and Bogle profiles as just that with a blend of size, quickness, and body control seen in only a few prospects per year. Bogle has been to campus multiple times since Pruitt took over, including his official visit that took place the weekend of the Orange & White Game. Many think he will ultimately be difficult to pry out of South Florida, but he stated that he almost committed to Tennessee this spring and he’s currently planning to return to Knoxville for at least one game this season (UF…if you’re sensing a pattern you should) so the Vols will absolutely be deeply involved until the end
CB Jaydon Hill: While the Vols have a very nice DB class as currently constructed, they are seeking one more high-end CB, and Hill is at the top of the list. He’d been on “commitment watch” for Tennessee for a few months until taking an official visit to Florida in July that apparently caused him much hesitation. However, recently the tide seems to have turned back the Vols way, and with a planned announcement for the first week of September he could be the next to jump in the boat. He’d absolutely be a big addition as he’s got the kind of speed/length Pruitt covets at the position and would allow the staff to focus its efforts on other positions
WR Javonta Payton: Tennessee only has nine scholarship WRs on its 2018 roster after only signing one in the 2018 class (Tillman), and while there are no seniors attrition could reduce that number even further for 2019. At the same time, the quality of the current WR corps is a matter of debate, and right now Ramel Keyton – a blue-chipper who projects as an instant impact contributor himself – is the only WR commit for 2019. Enter Payton, a Nashville-area native who signed with Ole Miss out of high school and is currently a Black Bear commitment at Northwest Mississippi CC. The big-bodied #4 ranked JUCO WR has been on Tennessee’s campus two times this summer, including for a camp in which he reportedly blew the coaches away. He hasn’t flipped his commitment yet, and Ole Miss will undoubtedly scratch and claw (and maybe do other thing$) to try and keep him, but as a plug and play prospect at a position of need – and a Tennessee native to boot – the Vols will absolutely work hard to land him and appear to be in good shape at the moment
WR Trey Knox A recruit who has been on Tennessee fans radar for a long time, Knox’s relationship with the Vols has been an interesting one to say the least. Without a doubt he was a priority for the former staff, but at that time he had eyes for OSU and Florida more than Tennessee. And when Pruitt came on, he was less than enamored with Knox’s game. However, Knox came to camp in Knoxville and not only earned Pruitt’s respect for doing so also earned a firm offer from the Vols with what has been described as an outstanding performance. Knox is a big (6’5, 200+) WR with good ball skills who showed good speed relative to that size when in Knoxville, and it appears the Vols would indeed take him right now. He’s got an October 1 announcement date set, with official visits to Arkansas (his leader at the moment, mostly due to the outsized attention they’ve shown him but also Chad Morris’s passing game reputation), Florida, and then Tennessee (for, you guessed it, the Florida game). So the Vols should get another, and perhaps the final, shot. How hard they press will be a determining factor for where Knox ultimately ends up, and could also be telling both about how they feel about Payton and Jalen Curry (below) and also how many more WRs they want to take
WR Jalen Curry Like Bogle (and Wanya Morris), Curry took his official visit to Knoxville for Tennessee’s spring game. And like Bogle and Morris, Curry was blown away. However, while the issue with landing Texas native does not appear to taking him from the instate Longhorns or Aggies, it’s the Auburn Tigers who have positioned themselves as his current leader. That said, Curry plans on returning for the Florida game, so he’s clearly not made any decisions yet. Curry is the kind of prospect who you’d probably make room for whenever he wants in, but that theory could be tested depending on the timelines of Payton and Knox
LB Henry To’ot’o’to Tenneessee is looking to add as much talent to its roster as possible, and while the LB corps looks to be fairly solid for the near future (especially if they can get JJ Perterson in), To’ot’o’to is the kind of prospect you go for if he gives you any indication you’ve got a real chance. He made the cross-country trek from California in June for an unofficial visit and by all accounts loved it. The Vols will be fighting both distance and also bigtime programs like Alabama and USC for him, but as of now they’re certainly in the mix
DL Kristian Williams A Memphis native, Williams appears to have been prioritized by Pruitt and Co. over other more highly rated instate DL. He’s been on campus a few times over the last year, and Pruitt has a relationship due to having been the main recruiter for Williams’s high school teammate in the 2018 class, Alabama signee Jordan Davis. The Vols made a recently released Top 6 for Williams, along with LSU and a handful of lower-tier programs. It does seem like, from this angle, that if the Vols press they can land him
DL Charles Moore Moore is technically committed to Mississippi State (and therefore could be placed in the tier below), but the Magnolia State native was a travelin’ man this spring and summer, visiting multiple campuses including two trips to Knoxville. Despite coming off of a semi-serious injury last season, Moore is a very highly recruited and ranked player. And like everyone else, the Vols can use as many talented DL as they can get. This one will likely come down to how serious Moore is about actually flipping – he lives very close to Starkville and has been to campus there a ton. If he is, and especially if he shows early in his senior season that his injury is not an issue, expect Tennessee to be in the mix along with Auburn, LSU and others
Tier II: Prospects Committed Elsewhere the Vols Continue to Recruit
Especially as it’s not even September, Tennessee will continue to recruit kids they like enough even if they are committed elsewhere.
DL Bill Norton/DL Zion Logue/DL Tymon Mitchell Three Tennessee natives who have committed to UGA, the Vols have at one time or another had differing levels of interest in each of them. But they are all talented players at a premium position, and from where I sit a kid with a committable offer from a program expected to win a second straight SEC East championship and contend for another playoff spot – especially a Tennessean – is worthy of being recruited hard by the Vols. It will be interesting to see how things go with each of these recruitments into the fall – they are all unique situations as to why they didn’t choose Tennessee the first go round – so we’ll see if the Vols get another shot with any of them and if so how Pruitt and Co. choose to respond. Given that current Tennessee commitment Leddarius Cox’s pledge is incredibly shaky – many think it’s just a matter of time before he flips to Auburn – I think it’s wise to keep an eye on these three as potential backfill prospects for him
DL Joseph Anderson Like the above UGA trio of commits, Anderson is an instate DL who is currently committed to an SEC school – this time South Carolina. While by all accounts Tennessee could have landed his commitment this spring, when they weren’t ready the Gamecocks pounced. There are differing opinions about how involved the Vols could get if they choose to reenter this recruitment, but this will potentially – if Anderson follows up his outstanding camp season with a strong start to the football year – be a test case in both Pruitt’s willingness to reevaluate prospects he previously was lukewarm on and also his ability to get back in on an instate kid he initially spurned
CB Woodi Washington Currently an OU commitment, Washington is a very highly rated CB who simply never connected with Pruitt and Co. Had he been able to camp in Knoxville and show out (ala Knox), the Vols might have recruited him much harder than they did. But as it stands he’s headed to a bigtime program without much of a fight from Tennessee. It remains to be seen if the Vols could get back in on him if they decide to try, and being “full” at CB it could complicate things further. We’ll see…
CB Maurice Hampton: A Memphis native and MLB prospect as well, Hampton has been committed to LSU for a while. Despite multiple foiled plans to get Hampton to campus the Vols continue to keep a dialogue going. I’m skeptical anything comes of this, as other programs have also tried to position themselves as a Geaux Tiger alternative. Like Washington, we’ll see as the year progresses
ATH Zion Puckett An elite athlete with a family tie to Tennessee who visited Knoxville a few weeks ago, Puckett committed to Auburn as expected last Friday. He’s the kind of player who you continue to recruit until he tells you to stop. Being so newly committed the Vols will probably give him some room for now, but no doubt they’ll check in with him throughout the season to see if the door is cracked
Tier III: Prospects Tennessee is Keeping Warm
Solid players who at this point don’t currently have a spot in the Tennessee class, these prospects will no doubt have Tennessee watching their film from the first few weeks of the season as they reassess their evaluations
OL Melvin McBride Another Memphis prospect who camped an earned a Vol offer (“dominated” in his words), in another year McBride might be a for-sure take. He’s got good size for a Guard – more weight and strength than height – and real upside as he’s relatively new to the game. But currently the Vols have only one more OL spot and that’s dedicated to Wright. Should McBride be willing to wait things could work out for him to have a spot in Knoxville, but he’s got other good options so therefore might go in another direction before that’s a true possibility
ATH Gyasi Mattison A relatively unknown prospect nationally, Mattison is thought by some instate insiders to be one of the best players in Tennessee regardless of position. Highly athletic with the potential to play either WR or DB, he could play his way into some bigtime offers this season. Whether it works out with Tennessee remains to be seen
WR Khafre Brown Another great athlete, Brown seems down the Tennessee WR board, at least behind Payton/Curry/Knox, if not also Mattison. But he’s got bigtime speed and good size, so if he shows out early in the season and things get squirrely with the aforementioned trio, the Vols could revisit
LB Lee Kpogba/LB Jamie Pettway As mentioned earlier, Tennessee doesn’t have a huge need at ILB in this class, and without a doubt Crouch and To’ot’o’to are ahead of these two. Both are solid prospects though and have been evaluated in person by the Vol staff so they’ll have a baseline when looking at early senior film
CB Devin Bush The Louisiana native (notably, without an LSU offer) has seen his stock drop a bit this summer. At one time he was highly ranked, had a firm offer from Clemson, could have committed to Tennessee if he had wanted to, and had Auburn coming on strong. However, Clemson seems to have moved on and Tennessee could be full if Hill does indeed commit to the Vols soon. Bush is a good player though, and Auburn is still without a CB commitment in this class so they are very much an option. However, at this point he could be considered a major (but talented) fallback option for the Vols