Tennessee Just Dunked on the SEC

by Chris Paschal

To steal a saying from SEC analyst and Tennessee juggernaut, Clay Travis, “Tennessee just dunked on the SEC.” You may be puzzled as to why I am claiming a class that ranks outside the top three in the SEC is so dynamic and talented that it literally dunked on the rest of the conference. Here’s why… you can’t look at all recruiting classes the same.

Think about this for a second, Tennessee is coming off a 5-7 record. The Vols are coming off a third straight loss to Vanderbilt. Tennessee is just a couple of years removed from the worst season in the program’s long and rich history.

Yet, with all that being said, this class is still borderline unbelievable. Let’s dive into it.

Offensive Line

First, Tennessee improved on the offensive line. This recruiting class is anchored by offensive tackle, Wanya Morris (6-6, 315). Morris, from Loganville, Georgia, was considered one of the best prospects in the entire country, and one of the top one or two prospects from the state of Georgia. Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt was able to go into Georgia and pluck one of the best offensive line prospects in the entire country. In the video below, Morris (64) goes up against Nolan Smith (2), the number one prospect in the entire country. Smith dominated every drill he participated in, except for when he went up against Morris.

Tennessee was also able to pick up two interior offensive linemen, as well, in guards Jackson Lampley (6-4, 300) and Melvin McBride (6-3, 315). Lampley, according to 247 Sports, was considered one of the top ten best prospects coming out of the state of Tennessee. McBride was a huge signee not just because he is a big, athletic prospect, but also because he is from Memphis, a city that is usually raided by Alabama, Ole Miss, Arkansas, and the rest of the SEC. Pruitt was also able to land a prospect out of IMG Academy in Chris Akporoghene.

Believe it or not, this offensive line class might get even better with five star prospect, Darnell Wright (the top offensive tackle prospect in the country, according to 247 Sports), heavily leaning towards the Volunteers.

Running Back

Further, beyond even the offensive line signees, Tennessee was able to flex some muscle within the SEC with some of the numbers hidden within this class. Pruitt was able to sign ten prospects out of the state of Georgia, he was able to sign the best running back prospect in the state of Tennessee in Eric Gray, another Memphis product, and he signed one of the better safeties in the 2019 recruiting class in Jaylen McCollough.

Defense

What’s scary is that just last night, Tennessee was able to sign one of the most intriguing prospects in the entire country, Charlotte’s Quavaris Crouch (6-3, 230). This dude is an absolute unit. Crouch was long considered by Rivals as the top prospect in the entire country, before falling in the rankings after he sat out his senior season due to injury. Crouch was originally considered a running back prospect, but he signs with Tennessee as what will most likely be one of the more athletic linebackers this Volunteer roster will have. It may take him some time to learn the position (not longer than a single season, though), but don’t be fooled, by 2020 this dude is going to be flying around making plays.

News also came out yesterday that defensive tackle Aubrey Solomon, the former five star prospect out of Georgia, would be transferring from Michigan to Tennessee. Solomon’s stats in Ann Arbor are not impressive, but that isn’t from a lack of talent, but instead due to injury. This could be a defensive anchor for Tennessee for the next couple of years.

So yes, while this class doesn’t have as many top recruits as Alabama or Georgia, this class is a great building block for Jeremy Pruitt and Tennessee. If Pruitt can figure out how to lock down Memphis, a city that feels like it is in a completely different state than Knoxville, this might be the beginning of many great classes to come on Rocky Top.