Vols Sitting 'Pretty High' For Coveted DL Hunter Osborne After Latest Visit

Tennessee hosted a large number of top targets across each position group in the 2023 class this past weekend, including highly sought-after Hewitt-Trussville (Ala.) defensive lineman Hunter Osborne. Osborne discusses the trip with Volunteer Country.

"I enjoyed everything," Osborne said of the trip. "I enjoyed it all. The coaches, the guys they are recruiting, the vision that coach Heupel has, the relationship all of the coaches are all trying to build with me. It meant a lot to me for them to make most of their time out to really get to know me and my family. I really enjoyed it."

Osborne enjoyed the more personal time with the Tennessee staff, as the conversation focused solely on building their relationship even stronger. 

"It was basically like, 'we want you here, you are a top guy for us, and we see you fitting in our system very well and early, honestly.,'" Osborne said of the message from the Tennessee staff during the visit. They told me I was the type of guy they want to recruit and want at Tennessee, and they want me to help build this class to be really strong. We really didn't have any football conversation at all. It was just about family and the connections we (Garner and Osborne) have from the state of Alabama. We already know that if I came there, I would play strong-side defensive end, and I would have to get to work."

The opportunity to build on the relationship and also see the city of Knoxville was something that also stood out to Osborne during this trip.

"The chance to build on the relationship and get to see the whole city of Knoxville as well," Osborne said of what was different about this trip compared to his other stops in Knoxville. It is a big city. It is definitely not just a college town—there is a lot you can do there and a lot of opportunities there as well."

The weekend also allowed the coveted defensive lineman to bond with Tennesse commits and top targets.

"I mean, getting a chance to talk to some of the commits was huge," Osborne said of the opportunity to spend time around fellow top targets this past weekend. "They spoke very highly of coach Heupel and the whole program at Tennessee. They told me it was the place to be, and this is the class that could change it around. Then some of the other recruits they are recruiting, we thought the same thing—we could see ourselves teaming up and making Tennessee a powerhouse."

Osborne was joined on Rocky Top by two fellow top recruits from the Yellow Hammer State, including close friend Tomarrion Parker.

"I didn't get to talk to Keldric (Faulk)that much, but I talked to Tomarrion," Osborne said of the conversation with his fellow recruits from the state of Alabama about potentially teaming up in Knoxville. "We are really close friends, just in general. We didn't necessarily talk about leaving the state to come to play in Knoxville, but we both just talked about this being a place that we could see ourselves at. We talked a lot about how great of a place it is, and we both enjoyed the visit. It might be a possibility, but we don't know yet."

So coming out of the unofficial visit, where do the Vols sit in Osborne's recruitment?

"They stand pretty high at the top of my list," Osborne said of where the Vols are in his recruitment currently. "I wouldn't say they are number one, but I wouldn't say anyone is number one at this point. I will wait until I evaluate every school I am going to, but right now, they sit pretty high on the list."

Osborne will start his official visit slate by going to Clemson this upcoming weekend. He will return to Tennessee for his official visit with the Vols on June 24th.