“It was great. I had a great experience,” said Cowan, who’s ranked the No. 55 overall prospect and No. 6 strongside defensive end in the industry-generated 247Sports Composite for the 2020 class. “It definitely lived up to the hype. I was hearing a lot about the atmosphere from just other players and then just people on the staff, so it was definitely exciting to see.”
The 6-foot-5, 265-pound Cowan said he was impressed by “just the fans” at Tennessee. While a less-than-capacity crowd attended Saturday’s game, he said he was impressed by “the fans and then how packed Neyland gets, and just how loud it is. It’s very loud throughout the game,” he said. “It was a great experience. You can definitely see the progress that’s being made on both ends of the field — offensively and defensively,” Cowan said.
“Really, just starting to progress more, and I think, as the years go on and as time goes on, they’ll definitely get back to where they used to be, as far as being a top-tier program. But it’s definitely a building block, and Coach Pruitt’s told me — along with other coaches, like (defensive line) coach (Tracy) Rocker — that what happened (Saturday), it can change. “It’s going to take awhile for it to happen, but you can definitely see the progress being made.”
“They definitely have caught my attention. Since they really offered me and the new staff came in, I’ve been in contact with the coaching staff since then, so the communication really hasn’t fell off. “They definitely have made sure that I know I’m a priority to them.” Tight ends coach
Brian Niedermeyer, who is serving as Cowan’s primary recruiter for Tennessee, “probably” talks with him the most among the Vols’ coaches, he said. But Cowan said he also talks with Pruitt “quite a lot,” and he has stayed in contact with Rocker and co-defensive coordinator
Chris Rumph.
