We finally have an answer. Volquest has learned on Tuesday afternoon that Aubrey Solomon will be able to help Tennessee’s inexperienced defensive line in 2019 after getting cleared for immediate eligibility by the NCAA.
The former 5-star Michigan transfer had his waiver granted by the NCAA and will likely start for the Vols against Georgia State next weekend.
The news is an early win for Tennessee before the 2019 season officially begins next Saturday, as the 6-foot-5, 300-pound defensive tackle has worked at the top of a DL rotation that returns just three guys who have played a single snap (Mattew Butler, John Mincey and Ja’Quin Blakley) in Division-1.
The Leesburg (Ga.) native transferred to Tennessee in January, surprising many when he chose to leave the Wolverines.
Since then, Solomon and Tennessee played a long waiting game on a ruling from the NCAA. The initial appeal for immediate eligibility was filed sometime in the spring. Sources told Volquest earlier this month that Tennessee had not submitted the waiver until April and then the NCAA had come back and requested more information, which in part of what created a delay in the ruling.
In two seasons at Michigan, Solomon played in 18 games and recorded 24 tackles and two TFL’s, which is more than Tennessee’s entire returning defensive line had last season.
Michigan has been at the center of several transfer decisions this summer, with head coach Jim Harbaugh even insinuating that some players were potentially fibbing about their reasons to leave Ann Arbor to gain immediate eligibility. To date, at least six undergraduate players have transferred from Michigan and only linebacker Drew Singleton had been granted immediate eligibility at Rutgers.
That changed Tuesday, when Solomon became the second Wolverine to get good news from the NCAA.
