Elite In-State Edge Prospect Caleb Herring Recaps Visits to Tennessee, More

2023 edge rusher Caleb Herring has become one of the most sought-after prospects in America. The Riverdale (Tenn.) standout already holds a handful of offers, and multiple other schools have expressed interest in his services, with potential offers looming. Herring has tripped to Tennessee on back-to-back weekends, and he discusses those trips and more here.

"It has been fun," Herring said of the recruiting process being in full swing. "I have been talking to a lot of different coaches like Auburn, Ole Miss with Lane Kiffin, and Georgia, schools like that. I am still trying to keep my recruitment open to every school because I am trying to have more of a business approach to it. I want to visit more than two schools like Vandy and Tennessee. I want to go out of state and visit schools, too."

Despite wanting to take more visits elsewhere, Herring has visited Tennessee on back-to-back weekends, allowing him the opportunity to see different environments at Tennessee and build a stronger bond with the coaches.

"On the first one, the South Carolina one, they really impressed me," Herring recalled. "They really showed me what they are about. The score was like 38-7 in the first half, and they really showed me what they can be. They could have finished better, but in the first half, they really showed me what they were made of."

"With the Ole Miss game, what I got from that visit was the fans," Herring added. "The fans are amazing, and the players really showed me that they have a lot of fight in them, and they won't give up."

The way the Vols played against the No.13 ranked Rebels did not come as a huge shock to

"I expected that, especially after what I saw against South Carolina," Herring said. "That defense stood their ground against that offense."

Tennessee already holds a commitment from Herring's older brother, Elijah, but they are not taking Caleb's recruitment for granted and are recruiting him by committee.

"It has been Coach Heup, Coach Ek and Coach BJ," Herring said of who he talks with at Tennessee. "I like how bad they want me. I would say they put their family and players first, and I like that."

Ekeler would be Herring's position coach if he was to choose Tennessee, and he has enjoyed getting to interact and seeing him on gamedays.

"It is cool to see," Herring said. "He is crazy on game days. I remember the South Carolina game; it was before the game, he came up to me, and he wanted to shake my hand, but he was fired up and slapped my hand. He was hyped."

As mentioned, Herring's older brother Elijah is committed to the Vols, and he was actually the first commitment of the 2022 class. Still, he has been supportive of his younger brother's process instead of trying to push him to Knoxville.

"Elijah has not been recruiting me as hard as I thought he would be," said the younger Herring. "He has been just letting me do my own thing. He doesn't want me to rush and commit."

"I needed to see the teams play, and a lot of schools have caught my eye with how they have been playing, but I still need to take some visits before I commit somewhere."

"I would say it will come down to the atmosphere and the coaches and how they put their players, families, and god first," Herring said on the key factors when making a decision."

Regardless of when a decision comes, Herring is focused on finishing his junior campaign strong at Riverdale, where he has already helped his team to a 7-1 record. His growth as a leader and player is a key reason for this.

"First of all, stepping up as a leader," Herring said about where he feels his game has grown from sophomore to junior year. "Like I played last year, I just played, but I really wasn't in a leader role. As far as my game, overall, getting off the ball faster, being more physical, and just doing what the coach wants from me, like jumping back in coverage, and I would say like getting off blocks and using my hands more."

The versatile edge defender is hungry for more, though.

"I want to work more on going up against O-linemen and bending around them," Herring said on where he wants to see his game improve. "Pretty much just speed rushing to where I can be physical and finesse tackles."

Herring does not have a particular player that he models his game after, but he watches Von Miller and Kahlil Mack intently to study their game.

Herring's next game will be this Friday against East Nashville Magnet School.