The first three years of
Bru McCoy’s college career haven’t gone according to plan, to say the least. But his limited production from his time at Southern Cal doesn’t paint a complete picture of the type of player he might turn out to be at Tennessee.
McCoy, a former five-star prospect, announced Tuesday that he has committed to the Vols, giving them a talented veteran capable of helping Tennessee replace former starting wide receivers
Velus Jones Jr. and
JaVonta Payton. Greg Biggins, a 247Sports national recruiting analyst, said he expects McCoy to be “an immediate-impact guy, for sure,” in the Vols’ offense.
Despite his pedigree as one of the nation’s top prospects in the 2019 class, the 6-foot-3, 220-pound McCoy in some ways is now “way underrated,” Biggins said. He’s a four-star prospect who’s ranked the No. 13 transfer wide receiver for the 2022 cycle.
“For me, I think he can be a dominant outside receiver,” Biggins said of McCoy, who was ranked the No. 9 overall prospect and No. 1 athlete in the 2019 class, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite, coming out of Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, Calif.
“I think he’s a big, physical, super-strong kid. Unbelievable compete level, phenomenal blocker, does whatever it takes to win, great teammate. Just from a physicality standpoint, I think he’ll be one of the most physical receivers. He kind of has a game — I used to kind of compare him to, like, a
Michael Irvin type, because he can use his body really well to kind of, like, box out smaller guys.
“But he’s a good athlete. He wins 50-50 balls. He wins jump balls. Super-strong hands. I think he’s got a little better athleticism than he’s given credit for.”
After redshirting in his first year at USC, McCoy caught 21 passes for 236 yards and a pair of touchdowns in six games during the Trojans’ pandemic-shortened 2020 season while playing in a USC receiving corps that included a 2021 fourth-round NFL draft pick in
Amon-Ra St. Brown, a 2022 first-round NFL draft pick in
Drake Londonand another receiver in
Tyler Vaughns who spent the 2021 season on an NFL practice squad.
McCoy was in line for a possible breakout season last year before he was suspended as the result of a domestic-violence arrest in July, ultimately forcing him to sit out the entire season.
While McCoy’s limited experience and modest production from his three years at USC might make him a wild card as he prepares to arrive at Tennessee, Biggins said there are plenty of reasons for the Vols to be excited about what McCoy could add to their offense.
“What
Drake London is, that’s what we thought Bru was going to be — just that dominant outside guy who just kind of bullies opposing corners and just wins those 50-50 balls, can run after the catch, super-competitive kid,” Biggins said. “I think he’s an immediate-impact guy, for sure.”
McCoy’s turbulent college career to this point — which started with McCoy signing with USC, enrolling there in January 2019 and quickly transferring to Texas before he rejoined the Trojans during the summer — has given him plenty of motivation, Biggins said, as he prepares for a fresh start with the Vols.
“I mean, he had the most picture-perfect high school career, and literally nothing’s gone right since,” Biggins said. “I think he knows who he is, and I think he knows what people think about him, so he’ll have a huge chip (on his shoulder) and he’ll be ready to go, for sure.
“I think he would’ve been their number-two guy behind Drake (last year). … He kind of came on the year before, even — made some pretty big plays two years ago. Then, last year, I think he definitely would’ve had a breakout season. Just some off-the-field nonsense that was dismissed, but unfortunately one of those deals where he kind of got caught up in a situation that was not really entirely his fault.
“That’s another reason why I think he’s going to be ready to go, because I feel like he’s basically had a year kind of, like, robbed — a whole year robbed from him. But I think he would’ve had a big year last year, for sure.”
Biggins said he has high expectations for what McCoy might be able to do in Tennessee’s fast-paced, high-scoring offense under second-year coach
Josh Heupel.
“I think that’s a huge reason why he likes Tennessee, because he knows you can go in there and catch 60 balls,” Biggins said of McCoy. “I definitely think he’ll be a guy that’ll catch 60 balls and be an immediate number-one, number-two guy. I don’t know the depth chart, but I think he has the capability of being a legit (number-)one or number-two receiver on any team.”
