Five Recruits the Vols need to land in the 2021 class to continue on-field success
Jeremy Pruitt's third season is going to be one of the most pivotal of his tenure in Knoxville. He brought in an impressive haul in his second full recruiting class, and the Vols appear to be on the cusp of breaking through on and off the field on and off the field after an 8-5 finish in 2019. As every college football head coach will tell you, the lifeblood of a successful program is sustaining high-level success on the recruiting trail and getting top targets that fit your system and can make an immediate impact. We will take a look at the five recruits, Jeremy Pruitt and Tennessee need to land this cycle to keep their momentum rolling and make the next big jump.
Five-Star Offensive Tackle Amarius Mims
Mims is the one guy on this list whose recruitment could go a multitude of ways. He just announced his commitment date of October 14th via Twitter, and he now has to sort through the national powers battling for his services, including the Vols. Mims visited Tennessee in January, and Will Friend made a big enough impression to keep the Vols in the mix. Mims was considered a lock to Georgia before the departure of Sam Pittman, but now things are wide open in his recruitment. The Vols brought in two blue-chippers in 2019, and they have to revamp the tackle spot in the 2021 cycle. Mims will hear the pitch, but as with any national battle, his recruitment will be intriguing. He is a guy that can be the cornerstone of an offensive line, so if Tennessee hopes to take the next big step, they need to land an elite offensive line prospect, and right now, he is the best of the best.
Five-Star Edge Rusher Dylan Brooks
Brooks has been to Tennessee on numerous occasions, and the Vols remain a competitor in this race. They hosted him prior to the dead period, and he has continued to grow a bond with Derrick Ansley and Jeremy Pruitt with the Alabama natives trying to pull him out of their home state. Auburn and Alabama are deemed as the likely landing spots in this one, but Jeremy Pruitt has been swinging at elite prospects in the Yellow Hammer state since arriving on Rocky Top at the end of 2018, and it is possible Brooks could be the one he lands. Brooks is rated as the top edge rusher in America, and he possesses an uncoachable length and explosion on the edge. Tennessee will need to get him to campus more over the next seven to eight months, but Brooks fits the mold of the edge rushers Pruitt coached at Alabama, Georgia, and Florida State. If Tennessee wants to recreate those types of defenses, they have to land guys like Brooks.
Five-Star Defensive Tackle Payton Page
Page is another tough pull out of the Tarheel state, but Tennessee has positioned themselves squarely in the mix for his services after a recent visit that gave him the opportunity to connect with new defensive line coach, Jimmy Brumbaugh. Tennessee is battling Clemson and North Carolina for his services, and both of those schools have been heavily involved. Tennessee has an immediate at the defensive tackle position in the 2021 class, and Page has been deemed as the top target for filling it. Page is not only a big body that fills space, but he is a guy that can move and impact plays, all while demanding a double team. There are not a ton of high-quality defensive tackle options in the 2021 class, so the Vols need a guy like Page to become the face of their defensive line for years to come.
Four-Star Running Back Cody Brown
Tennessee already has a dynamic playmaker committed in the 2021 class in Elijah Howard. Tennessee will be creative in getting the ball in Howard's hands, but he is not the feature back that they hope to land in the 2021 cycle. It has been a while since Tennessee has had a feature back, and while Eric Gray appears to be one in the making, you can never stop recruiting the position. Cody Brown out of Parkview (GA) has dominated 7A football in one of the toughest classifications in all of America since he was a freshman. Brown has rushed for over a thousand yards in multiple seasons, and he is a workhorse. He has been compared to Nick Chubb due to his low center of gravity, which allows him to run through tackles and drag defenders, and his deceptive speed to outrun angles. Tennessee needs a back of Brown's caliber in this class, and every class for that matter.
Four-Star Cornerback Nyland Green
Tennessee could replace a couple of corners after this season if Bryce Thompson and Alontae Taylor continue to grow in Jeremy Pruitt's turnover hungry system. Pruitt and Ansley should have no problem landing top-notch DB's with their track records, and Nyland Green fits the mold of everything they desire. Green is a long, rangy cornerback who runs well in man coverage, wins battles with his length, and preys on any mistake a quarterback makes when he drops off into coverage. Green plays as a centerfielder in the Newton defense in passing situations because he can cover so much ground and his break on balls forces turnovers or incompletions at a high level. Tennessee is battling several other heavy hitters for his services, but Derrick Ansley has them squarely in the race.
The likelihood of Tennessee landing even 60% of the guys on this list are slim, but the Vols would be ecstatic with the number. These guys have the ability to make immediate impacts on Tennessee's program from the day they step on campus. Pruitt and Company have to win some of these battles as they continue to turn this program around.