“It was nice,” said Oxendine, who’s ranked the No. 474 overall prospect and No. 47 defensive tackle in the 2020 class, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. “They had a nice basketball game that they played — Kentucky — so it was a nice environment. You can tell they’ve got some good fans up there.”
“I didn’t know their fan base was actually that good until I got to the football game and saw how many they had in there. Then, coming to the basketball game and seeing the environment there, too, they had a lot there, also.”That’s just one of the reasons Oxendine said he’s interested in Tennessee, and he expects to visit the Vols again in the coming months.He said Tennessee’s campus and facilities also have caught his attention, and second-year Vols coach
Jeremy Pruitt’s staff — including tight ends coach
Brian Niedermeyer, defensive line coach
Tracy Rocker and quality control analyst
Brandon Deaderick — have made good impressions on him.
“I think it’s the way that Coach Rocker coaches and how he carries himself,” Oxendine said. “He’s very professional with everything, and he’s always straight-up with everybody.“All the players up there told me how they keep it real with everybody. They’re going to tell you how you are and what you did on the football field and coach you how you’re supposed to be coached. But outside of football, they just make you feel like you’re one of their own.”Oxendine said Tennessee has “been recruiting me pretty hard,” and his trip to Knoxville earlier this month allowed him to spend time with Pruitt, Niedermeyer, Rocker, Deaderick and new defensive coordinator
Derrick Ansley, among others.“I spoke with Coach Pruitt again, and I got to talk with basically everybody on the coaching staff. I got to talk to the defensive coaches,” said Oxendine, who also has picked up offers from Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Louisville, West Virginia, Purdue and Indiana.
He’s not sure when he might be ready to decide on a college, but he said he will “most likely wait it all the way through.”
