Hard to overstate how big of a commitment DL Omari Thomas is for Tennessee. Thomas is a true blue chip prospect, with the kind of size and talent that requires no explanation. With the Vols major need for DL in this class, particularly as one looks to 2021 and beyond, Thomas is a cornerstone player for the future of the Vol defense. And as much as landing the Whitehaven Trio was big in its own right, Thomas represents another bigtime recruiting win against elite programs like Alabama and such, while also further cementing Tennessee as the dominant recruiting power in Memphis under Coach Jeremy Pruitt.
Thomas’s high school teammate RB Jabari Small is set to commit tomorrow, and all signs point to him continuing Tennessee’s sweep of Memphis. In this writer’s opinion Small profiles as a very capable SEC back, with better-than-you-might-think size (5’11, 190) and a combination of good if not great speed and outstanding quickness, agility, and short-area moves. Very much in the mold of Eric Gray, Small is a great complement to Tennessee’s other RB commitment Tee Hodge, playing the classic Lightning role to Hodge’s Thunder. Smalls was, along with Thomas, a finalist for Tennessee’s Mr. Football, and finished his senior season with 29 TDs and just under 2,000 rushing+receiving yards. His final game was a 4 TD performance in the Tennessee high school playoffs against Ensworth and their P5-littered defense.
I don’t think it’s coincidental that the Tennessee smoke coming out of Morven Joseph’s OV to Florida on Sunday came within hours of Vol commitment Jimari Butler telling Rivals that he was essentially decommitting from Tennessee. The guess here is that the Tennessee staff they said something to the effect of “If you’re taking other visits we can’t hold your spot.” Butler then went to Nebraska this past weekend and was then his spot was taken. Butler is certainly a good looking prospect with outstanding upside – we’ve said as much here and here – but it’s hard to compare him to Joseph and not come away feeling like the Vols would be well off with that swap. Joseph’s clearly got a more refined game, and while he’s not go Butler’s physical size he’s far from small at 6’3 220. And there’s a reason he got springtime offers from the likes of Alabama and Auburn and that his other finalist is Florida – three teams known for dominant pass rushers. With word that Pruitt and his staff are still pushing to flip BJ Ojulari back from LSU, things at Edge Rusher could end up finishing better than anyone could have ever imagined and the Vols will be SET there for a few years.
Tennessee looks like it’s in really good shape for TCU QB/ATH commitment Jimmy Holiday from Madison, MS, especially after wowing him by bringing the entire offensive staff on his inhome visit. Ranked by 247 as the 1,389th (!!!) prospect in the class and the 33rd player in Mississippi, the forecast here is that Holiday will skyrocket up the rankings after this coming AL/MS All-Star Game week. Holiday is simply electric with the ball in his hands and his film shows some modicum of passing ability. A lot this week could depend on which position(s) he practices at, but expect to hear rave reviews from national writers coming out of Hattiesburg.
Tennessee’s staff could not have set this weekend up more perfectly. Days before the Early Signing Period begins, the Vols will have a TON of top talent on campus. And not only that, the recruits will be present for what should be a wild and raucous atmosphere in Thompson Boiling Arena as Rick Barnes’s squad dominates the Memphis Tigers. Below are the recruits set to officially visit:
TE Darnell Washington
WR Ramon Henderson*
WR Corey Wren
RB Zaquandre White (JUCO)
ILB Desmond Tisdol
ILB Vai Kaho
OLB Jaqwondis Burns*
DB Emmanuel Appiah (JUCO)
DB Donovan Kaufman
DB Decamerion Richardson
DB Doneiko Slaughter
* tentative
We made the case for oversigning last week, simply based on the sheer amount of top talent that Tennessee could very, very realistically land were numbers not an issue. With now eight spots remaining pending any further decommitments or scholarship gymnastics, Tennessee’s board is basically a decision tree of prospects. For example:
Are you holding a spot for Darnell Washington? If Yes, you now have seven spots. If no, or if you’re told he’s not coming, you’re back to eight
Do you land Tyler Baron? Do you also land Octavius Oxendine? If Yes to both, do you take Reginald Perry?
Are you holding a spot in February for Jay Hardy? What if he signs with Auburn next week? Either way, what does that do for Perry?
Do you take Vai Kaho, or Desmond Tisdol, or both ILBs?
If you land Morven Joseph at Edge, do you take another? Is Khari Coleman that guy, or does it have to be Ojulari?
Do you think you need another DB? Is Mordecai McDaniel solid anyway, or is a flip to Florida in the works? If either one is Yes, what’s the order of your list?
Assuming you land Small tomorrow, do can you possibly take a 3rd RB (White, or even Len’neth Whitehead)?
If you land Holiday, is he your 2nd QB or your 4th WR to go with Jalin Hyatt, Jimmy Calloway and Darion Williamson? If he’s a QB, does that open 1-2 spots for Henderson and Wren? If there’s only one more, who do you prioritize?
And finally, what do you do if Tate Ratledge gives you an indication that he might flip? What about if you have to wait to February? Who loses their spot from the list above?
For the most part these are all good problems to have. The Vols are deep in the mix with upwards of 20 prospects, each of whom would upgrade the overall talent level on Tennessee’s roster at their respective positions, and some of them are no-brainer, blue chip guys for whom the Vols are recruiting against some of the top programs in the country. Pruitt and his staff are showing no signs of slowing down to set themselves up in the best position possible with the deepest and most talented board they can get. The next, and maybe most important step, will be to read the board correctly and manage things such that they land as many of the players THEY WANT as they can.