No. 1 JUCO Cornerback Includes Vols Among Top Schools

De’Jahn Warren, one of the top JUCO players in the nation, does not plan on signing with his college destination until December, but that didn’t stop the Maryland native from trimming his list of potential destinations down to 7...

De’Jahn Warren, one of the top JUCO players in the nation, does not plan on signing with his college destination until December, but that didn’t stop the Maryland native from trimming his list of potential destinations down to 7. The institutions that Warren included among his top schools were Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Florida State, Penn State, Tennessee, and his home state school: the University of Maryland.

#BoomerSooner 🔴⚪️#GBO 🍊#RollTide 🐘🔴#Noles 🍢#GoDawgs 🐶#Terps 🐢#WeAre 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/WY02e2vyS1

— De’Jahn “Nugget” Warren (@D4Warren) July 12, 2020

Warren’s new list of schools is the first he has released since March, when he announced his top 11 schools — Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Nebraska, and Oregon were all included back then but were excluded in the most recent list. The recruitment process has accelerated quickly for Warren due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, as he has been forced to make his decision a little faster than he anticipated.

“I’ve been trying to narrow down my schools because I sign in December, but the coronavirus is kind of making me have to speed up my decision,” Warren told the Testudo Times back in March. “I’ve spent the majority of my break talking to coaches and things like that to try and narrow down some places I want to go to, and the places that recruit me heavy as well. I want to go somewhere that makes me feel wanted.”

Warren didn’t get much attention coming out of high school, forcing the Hyattsville, Maryland native to sign into the JUCO levels — enrolling in Lackawanna Community College, a small institution in Scraton, Pennsylvania which participates in the XIX division, back in 2018. After an impressive freshman season for the Falcons, the cornerback’s recruitment exploded as a multitude of prestigious programs began heavily pursuing Warren. However, the 6’0’’ 175-pound cornerback didn’t let the newly found attention go to his head, as he claims that it actually came as quite the surprise to him.

“Honestly it shocked me,” Warren told the Testudo Times regarding the large amount of recent offers he earned from collegiate programs. “This was my first year playing corner, so I tried to give it my all and do my best to leave it out on the field. It shocked me, but then again, this is something I’ve been waiting for.”

The University of Tennessee was the first program to offer Warren back in December, which would start off the momentum towards him as his recruitment snowballed over the last few months. “To get an offer from Tennessee is honestly a blessing, especially with it being the first offer I've ever received,” Warren told Sports Illustrated back in December. “ It’s a great feeling to know that someone is watching and is willing to give me an opportunity to be a part of their program.”

“The contact from the coaching staff was awesome at first,” Warren told VR2. “We started off texting, and they were giving quick responses and the phone call was even better. Now I’m building a relationship with the coaching staff and it is a great and honorable experience for me.”

Warren is also very familiar with the universities in his top list of programs, as he has officially visited four of them: Pennsylvania State University on September 26th, the University of Oklahoma on November 20th, the University of Tennessee on December 4th, and the University of Georgia on December 11th. With four of his five official visits already in the book, it will be a heated competition between Maryland, Florida State, and Alabama for the final visit before his highly anticipated decision.

In addition to Tennessee being the first program to offer Warren, the Vols are also a unique university to the young cornerback because of their activity at his current community college, as Jeremy Pruitt also brought in defensive linemen Savion Williams — who attended the same community college that Warren did back in his days at the JUCO ranks last off-season. The Volunteers are also an interesting factor in his recruitment because their primary recruiter for Warren’s services, Joe Osovet, has a long history in the JUCO ranks — which could resonate well for the No. 2 JUCO player in the nation.

Warren will have two seasons of eligibility remaining following signing with a program, regardless of which university he chooses to attend. While the cornerback has no official plans to commit to a school in the near future, he has stated on numerous occasions that he will enroll in the early signing period.