“His team came here as a 7-on-7 team, and he was the snapper,” Martin said of Spraggins, one of three interior linemen who signed with Tennessee on the first day of the Early Signing Period. “He was the center, but it’s 7-on-7, so you’re like, ‘Who’s this big guy snapping the ball?’ “And we pulled him over to the side and took him through a private workout, and this guy impressed everyone — his size, his speed, quickness, and very, very strong. He put his hands on one of our coaches and almost knocked him down.”
“He’ll be an interior lineman for us,” said Martin, who served as Spraggins’ area recruiter for Tennessee. “Football intellect is what we all talk about. When you talk football with this young man, his football intellect shows up right away. Great program, state champion — looking forward to having him here.”
Martin said the Vols have been particularly impressed by “his size-speed ratio for an interior lineman,” and they believe his athleticism will add to their offense. “And what we like to do: We like to run the outside zone. We like to pull our guards and things of that nature,” Martin said. “He’ll be great on the perimeter — screens, things of that nature — so we’re just excited about that skill set with a man that big.
“Happy that he’s wearing the orange and white.”
Tennessee head coach
Jeremy Pruitt said Spraggins was “another guy that was part of a state championship team” at East St. Louis, one of several past state champions in the Vols’ 2020 class.
Pruitt said Spraggins is “a guy that’s extremely athletic, has really good balance and body control,” and he pointed out on Early Signing Day that Spraggins was “probably as excited about having a chance to continue his football career in college as anybody I’ve ever been a part of in recruiting.”
At the time, Pruitt added that Spraggins had “already been calling today, wanting to get the playbook, wanting to get the next workout.”
“A guy that’s just hungry, ready to get here,” Pruitt said.