Long-Time Vols Commit Edwin White Opts Out of High School Season, Turns Preparation Towards Tennessee

Author:
Matt Ray
Publish date:
Oct 25, 2020 7:35 PM EDT

Edwin White has been committed to Tennessee since March 7th of this year, and he has now fully turned his attention to getting ready for his time at Tennessee.

White announced today that he is opting out of his high school season to start preparing for Tennessee.

He wrote on Twitter: "After Celebrating My Birthday and having a good talk with @coachtee1 I’ve decided to opt out the rest of my high-school season & prepare for college/next level."

White's UMS Wright-Prepatory team is currently 6-3 and in pursuit of a fourth-straight state title.

White recently told VR2 on SI, "honestly, Tennessee talks to me almost every day, at least three times a week. I talked to coach Pruitt on FaceTime. Yesterday was his birthday, so I text and wished him a happy birthday."

White will now sign with Tennessee in December and enroll early to get his career on Rocky Top jump-started.

Below is White's SIAA Evaluation:

Prospect: Edwin White

Projected Position: Safety

Status: SI All-American Candidate

Vitals: 6-foot, 196 pounds

School: Mobile (Ala.) UMS Wright-Preparatory School

Committed to: Tennessee

Frame: Compact and developed. Above-average width across upper body. Long, muscled arms. A bit high waisted. Powerful, tightly-wound thighs and trunk. Room for more weight, but likely tops out around 210 pounds.

Athleticism: Good acceleration. Long-strider with above-average long speed. Adequate overall quickness and flexibility. Strong. Packs major punch as tackler. Natural ball skills.

Instincts: Advanced awareness in coverage. Reads quarterback’s eyes to pounce early as deep center fielder, resulting in interceptions and pass breakups. Effortlessly tracks ball in air. Hands catcher whose experience at receiver translates to defense. Aggressive flowing downhill in run support.

Polish: Fluid backpedal. Just as comfortable manning deep middle as attacking LOS as run defender. Big hitter, but not the most sound tackler. Shows patience as last line of defense in run support.

Bottom Line: White is a strong, fast and instinctive safety with the size and ball skills to play multiple roles for Tennessee. Should see the field early in sub packages as extra defensive back, eventually emerging as quality, versatile starter at either safety spot.