When new Coach Jeremy Pruitt and his new blockbuster recruiting staff first took over, they threw a whole lot of offers out and cast an incredibly wide net. Taking advantage of existing relationships across not just the South but also as far as California, Tennessee hasn’t been afraid to go to head with programs like Alabama and USC and other blue bloods or be told no by elite players with whom they are simply too late. Pruitt created a large board from which to work from and signed a very highly regarded early signing class, especially when one considers he had less than two weeks to work.
At the same time, as we enter the stretch run to National Signing Day, it looks like we’ve seen them move on from a good number of guys they initially showed interest in:
S Nikko Hall
DL Caleb Okechukwu
DB Rayshad Willliams
WR Brandon Aiyuk
CB Richard McCreary
RB Mo Washington
RB Tavion Thomas
RB C’Bo Flemister*
DL Emmit Gooden **
* This one is less clear, but there is no doubt that Tennessee has slow played him to a degree while Notre Dame is showing him much more love – I wouldn’t be shocked to see him commit to the Irish weekend
**Gooden continues to have academic questions surrounding him, and with the limited spots available I don’t think the staff can afford to take him despite its relatively recent offer
In contrast,with only 5-6 spots scholarships to give, the staff has made it clear by its actions – in-home visits and scheduled official visits – that the following 18 are high priorities (some more than others, of course):
WR Jacob Copeland
WR Geordon Porter
WR Antoine Green and his cousin, RB Jashaun Corbin
WR Tre’shaun Harrison
WR Warren Thompson
OL Dylan Wonnum
OL Ryan Winkel
TE Glenn Beal
DL Coynis Miller
DL Malik Langham
DL John Mincey
DL Otito Ogbonnia
LB Quay Walker
CB Olaijah Griffin
CB Eddie Smith
CB Isaac Taylor-Stewart
S Trevon Flowers
This list will continue to thin more and more the next two weeks as Tennessee gets a better feel for whom they have a realistic chance -for instance, it seems like they have little traction with WRs Thompson and Harrison – and others simply come off the board or others take their spot. Ogbonnia and Flowers are two in particular who will be in Knoxville this weekend, and the staff will get a chance to size both of them up and at the same figure out where each fit into their plans and vice versa. But the above is probably a good working list for the next two weeks, although this staff has proven they will continue to beat the bushes such that another player could jump onto the board.
Stay tuned, it’s going to be a wild ride…