The 6-foot-4.5, 235-pound Shelby received an offer from Tennessee a year ago and visited the Vols for the first time on July 30, spending two days in Knoxville. Over the past several months, he has continued to hear plenty from Ekeler, along with Tennessee head coach
Josh Heupel.
"They tell me I’m one of their main priorities, and my skill set would do wonders for the team," Shelby told GoVols247 in late February.
The Vols now are facing even more competition for Shelby, who has received offers from at least 35 schools. Miami, LSU, Florida, Arkansas and Texas Tech are among the programs that have extended offers to him within the past week.
Notre Dame and Georgia are among the other schools still showing interest in him.
"I still plan on taking visits to Florida State and Georgia, then using my official visits," Shelby told 247Sports' Hudson Standish in late April.
Last week, Shelby told 247Sports' Gaby Urrutia that Texas and USC likely will get official visits from him in June. That leaves three official visits still up for grabs with a potential commitment coming before his senior season. The offer he received from Miami last week put the Hurricanes in the running for him. Florida State, Tennessee, Baylor and Auburn also are in the picture, along with the home-state Longhorns and the Trojans.
"I’m still very open," Shelby told Urrutia last week. "Getting that Miami offer (last week) really changed the game up, really."
Shelby is ranked by 247Sports as the No. 31 edge rusher in the 2023 class and the No. 50 junior from the state of Texas. He's also a three-star prospect in the industry-generated 247Sports Composite.
