No Rest for Recruiting

Lane Kiffin and the Tennessee coaches are nothing if not tireless workers and have been notorious during their short tenure for squeezing the most out of every spare second of time. Thus the news that they would be hitting the recruiting trail hard during the bye week came to no surprise to anyone who has attempted to keep track of Tennessee recruiting. There would be no duck hunting for Kiffin’s staff in it’s spare time. Just headhunting.

Much has been made of Lane Kiffin and Ed Orgeron’s trip via helicopter to visit prospects at two different games in the same evening in the fertile recruiting ground of Atlanta and with good reason. It’s not every day the coach of a major college program drops “Airwolf style” (okay more Magnum P.I. style) into a field beside your game on national TV just to watch you play. Kiffin even had the time to be quizzed by North Gwinnett coach Bob Sphire regarding some play-action passes he’d seen Tennessee run this year.

“I can’t reveal any trade secrets, but we may do some of it” he remarked.

Its also hard to believe Kiffin did not manage a smirk when he learned his star player was treking back to his home turf of Fairburn — just south of Atlanta — to have his jersey retired at halftime of the Creekside-Lovejoy matchup the same evening as his Atlanta trip. Berry’s story is a powerful message to area athletes that you can leave the area, come to a school such as Tennessee and not only will your community support you, they will bestow you with every accolade your success merits. A statue of Berry in the town square is likely to be erected soon. I hear that they are in a race with Knoxville to see who can get one built first.

The North Gwinnett roster includes at least two prospects the Vols are feverishly pursuing: offensive lineman Jawaun James and 2011 quarterback prospect C.J. Uzomah.

James is a guy who has been the subject of much speculation following his de-commitment from Alabama earlier this month. He has visited UGA several times and will look to take an official there as well. He was in Knoxville when the Vols dominated Georgia just recently and many think that put the Vols squarely in the lead if they already were not. Vol coaches think if they can get his mom up for a visit it will seal the deal as they already think dad is in their corner.

Uzomah is one of many highly regarded quarterback prospects the Vols are looking at in next year’s class. It appears that it may come down to which one commits first. Uzomah and James are very close and have taken visits together this year and whoever lands James will have a head start on landing Uzomah.

Highly recruited defensive tackle Mike Thornton was impressed enough after Kiffin’s trip to his game when his Stephenson squad conquered rival MLK 20-0 to include the Vols among the teams he will likely visit. He has a former teammate on the Vols already in Nigel Mitchell-Thornton (no relation) and has said that it would be nice to play with him at the next level.

Georgia is recruiting him hard, but the predominant opinion is that Auburn will be tough to beat.

Running back and current Florida commit Mack Brown was on the losing side of that lopsided battle though he did put in a valiant effort carrying 19 times for 103 yards despite Thornton blowing up the middle of the line on most every play.

Kiffin and company would love to get Brown to switch his commitment from the Gators to the Vols and be done with the running back position. They have Brown as high, if not higher on their board than any other back. ESPN rates Brown as their third running back in this class behind only Michael Dyer and Marcus Lattimore.

Brown indicated to the AJC that Kiffin had already made a trip to his High School earlier in the day and they exchanged pleasantries.

Another situation to eye very closely is that of Arkansas teammates RB Michael Dyer and OL/TE Dakota Mosely. Some had all but written them off as Auburn Tigers, but we have learned from two different sources close to the situation that Dyer might be more open to other schools than he has let on publicly. He absolutely has not given any sort of commitment to Auburn or the Auburn coaches. They both like Tennessee very much and both fathers, whom are very involved in their sons’ recruitment, like the Vols. A visit to Knoxville will happen before any sort of commitment to Auburn and is likely to take place in November.

It has been known for some time now that the Vols were likely targeting two quarterbacks in this class. They have one wrapped up in California prospect Tyler Bray, but may not be as convinced as some Vol fans seem to be in Bray’s ability to lead the team as a true freshman. They are looking for help in that regard and the likely source will be the ranks of the Junior Colleges.

Saturday, the Vols sent Offensive Coordinator Jim Chaney to El Camino Community College in Torrance, CA to see the son of NFL hall-of-famer Phil Simms, Matt Simms and Quarterbacks coach David Reaves to Blinn College in Brenham, TX to evaluate former Florida Gator Cameron Newton.

Most thought that Simms would really have to bomb not to be the choice of the two and Simms was having nothing of that as he threw for 320 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT in a 42-20 victory over conference rival College of the Desert. Simms is a pro style quarterback that fits well into the offense utilized by Kiffin’s Volunteers.

Newton is a very intriguing prospect with huge upside and an ideal skill set to fit into most any offense. Many have cited his potential in a spread offense as a negative when looking at how he would fit in Kiffin’s system. I would argue that this will have nothing at all to do with who the coaches ultimately choose. It will have more to do with the ability of either prospect to manage the game and command leadership. A huge strike against Cameron is that he is wanting some sort of guarantee that he will be the starter before committing to any program. That is understandable from the standpoint of only having two years to prove your NFL worth, but doesn’t fit with the Volunteer coaches’ desire to drive an intense competition at the position in Spring and well into Fall practice.

The prospect that everyone wants to know about is higlight film sensation Jeff Luc out of Port St. Lucie, Florida (Treasure Coast.) Luc, who is likely Eddie Gran’s #1 target, was on hand for the Auburn game and reportedly was close to committing on his trip. According to most this is now a UT-Florida battle with FSU falling out of favor due to their struggles and the mess surrounding the future of Bobby Bowden.

Luc has not given interviews since his visit to Knoxville and it is thought that he may be shutting down his recruitment somewhat for the time being and mulling over his choices.

He has an uncle that resides in Knoxville and the Vol coaches are using that to their advantage. Family will likely be the most important factor in this decision. Eddie Gran paid Luc’s school a visit on Tuesday and is working hard to try and get his parents up for a visit. Being that Luc has already used his official visit, they would have to finance the visit themselves and that may be an issue preventing them from coming up immediately. If his parents visit, the Vols have a shot. If they don’t, it will be tough to pull him.

This isn’t one of those guys that is just playing the recruiting game. He hates the process and really just wants to get it over with so he can finish out his senior year and focus on enrolling in his future school in December. Don’t be surprised if his Tennessee visit was the last one Luc takes.

Another guy that the Vols are said to lead for after the front-runner has been thought to be Florida for some time is OT Chaz Green. Green is a monster prospect and the top uncommitted offensive lineman that Tennessee is pursuing.

After months of hearing that Florida leads and that he may even be a silent commitment to them now it is being said that Tennessee has the edge over the Gators. Green paid a visit to Knoxville for the Georgia game and the Vols are said to have made a huge impression.

Both of Green’s parents are graduates of UT — though they now reside in Tampa, Florida where they are no doubt very familiar with Monte Kiffin due to his years on the Buccaneer’s staff as the Defensive Coordinator.

Chaz is obviously a priority for the Vols due to the glaring need at the position and this is one that they will be a factor in ’til the end. Expect Chaz to wait until Signing Day to decide.

The Vols want to land at least 3 more offensive linemen in this class and their propsects are good with several guys.

Junior College player [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][B]John Cullen[/B] is a guy that the coaches think can come in and play very early. While the Vols are squarely in the lead according to John, there are many schools that could benefit from a guy coming in already in playing condition and it isn’t going to be easy to hold onto that lead. Miami is the latest school to offer and Cullen plans on taking a visit there after his season is over. He also wants to visit Utah and Auburn unofficially. Utah was his declared leader prior to seeing the Vols.

Vol fans have known about Nashville’s James Stone for quite awhile now. He is high on the priority list being an instate prospect that many schools, including Alabama, would love to steal from the Tennessee.

James took an unofficial visit the weekend of the Auburn game and Orgeron was just at his school this week. Most say it will be a UT-Bama battle in the end and expect the Vols to emerge the victor. Stone projects as a guard.

A guy the coaches narrowly missed on last year was Morgan Moses from Richmond, Va who was a silent to Tennessee for some time prior to Fulmer’s exit from the program. Moses ended up signing with Virginia, but not making the grades required for admittance. He is now in prep school and given the likely departure of Virginia coach Al Groh, he will probably end up elsewhere. Tennessee is in on him as hard as anyone and Willie Mack Garza was in Virginia this past week to see where he is at with his weight and conditioning and to evaluate his progress.

The last offensive linemen we will discuss is a guy that is highly coveted but very tight-lipped on what he is thinking or where he might be leaning. Damien Robinson was thought to have been at one point down to Bama and Tennesssee, but recently schools such as LSU and Ole Miss have entered the picture as well. The Vols are certainly one of the favorites to land his signature.

Many thought the coaches were done at the fullback position and they may be, but this could be a spot to watch. The coaches continue to evaluate Red Bank’s(Chattanooga) Keon Williams as a fullback and there is some thought that they may like him better than the guy they already have committed, Channing Fugate. With the coaches looking at Fugate as an h-back type player, yet still looking for a true TE in this class, the thinking may be that they would rather go with a traditional FB as well as a traditional TE. One thing that concerns the coaches with Williams is whether he will make the grades and considering the new 28 player limit on signing classes, the coaches may opt to go in the safer direction here. It is nevertheless something to keep an eye on.

Even if the Vol coaches choose to go with Fugate, they would like to get a true TE in this class. Here are some names to watch out for.

JUCO Ken Adams will be a December enrollee. It has been reported that UT has offered. Adams has been thought to be leaning toward committing to Auburn, who he first committed to out of High School, but the Vols are making a push.

Alabama TE Davis Dudchock is currently committed to Vandy but the coaches were able to get him to visit the weekend of the Auburn game and the Vols are currently under consideration. Dudchock has been paying attention to how the Vols are utilizing TE Luke Stocker and likes what he sees. Lance Thompson was at his school to speak with his coach during the week and is trying to get Dudchock back on campus for a visit. ESPN lists Dudchock as the 10th best TE in the clas of 2010.

Another possible tight end target is North Carolina’s Ethan Farmer who has the Vols on his list of schools. Farmer is being recruited by UT coach David Reaves and has most every school in the Southeast among his offers. I’m not sure how much the Vols are in this one, but he is a guy they would love to have.

It appears that the Vol coaches aren’t ready to give up on Matt Elam even after the reaffirmation of his commitment to Florida which came following a conversation with coach Urban Meyer. A source close to Elam’s recruitment says that, surprisingly, Elam was a little intimidated by the prospect of following in the footsteps of Eric Berry.

Lane Kiffin was at Elam’s High School on Tuesday. The thought here is that Elam is firm to the Gators, but don’t expect the Vols to quit recruiting who they think is the best safety prospect in the country and the top player in Florida.

The Vols want to add another safety this year and if they can’t land Elam then they do have several other directions in which they can go. The guy who has received the most attention the past few months has been LA Canada prospect Dietrich Riley who was at one time thought to be a heavy lean to the Vols. USC has really come on in recent months despite already having one star safety committed and is the school to watch in this one. Riley has already visited UCLA, UT, and Notre Dame and wants to bring his mom back for a visit to Knoxville. Curiously he said the same thing about South Bend. It’s hard to get a read right now on what Riley is going to do so just stay tuned.

A guy that could play safety or corner according to some is Demetrius Wright. This is another guy that USC is on hard and are telling him he will play cornerback there. Wright isn’t pleased with the crowded depth chart in the defensive backfield for USC though and is exploring other options, one of those being Tennessee.

Wright plans on visiting Halloween weekend when the Vols play South Carolina and he is bringing his mother along. It’s much more likely that Tennessee lands Wright than Riley. This will be the second time he has been to Knoxville for a visit.

Corey Cooper is another possibility at safety. He is currently committed to Illinois, but has been openly considering other schools. Right now ND, Illinois, and Tennessee are all equal according to him and all schools have an equal opportuntiy of landing him.

Expect Cooper to visit Knoxville sometime this fall.

Though some most likely assumed we were done at the WR position having 4 prospects already committed that some project as wide receivers the coaches want to add one more guy. The thought is according to different people I have spoken with that the coaches expect Cobbs and Meline to both end up on defense. The defensive staff really loves what they see out of Cobbs. The fact is the coaches want to land at least one shifty, burner-type WR to go along with Ambles and Milton. Chris Dunkley fits the bill perfectly.

Although most experts will tell you that Dunkley is most likely to end up at Florida there are many out there that have said UT will be in it ’til the end with him. Reportedly he and Nu’Keese Richardson keep in contact and Nuke has been selling him hard on the Tennessee program.

Dunkley is Eddie Gran’s biggest target behind Jeff Luc and he has been working him so hard you would wonder where in the heck he gets the time.

One of Dunkley’s concerns has been that Florida does not run a pro style offense though Urban Meyer has been selling he and other recruits on the idea that they will run a pro style offense next year with John Brantley despite the fact that they have lined Brantley up in the shot gun with the field spread every snap he has ever taken at Florida including this season.

He will take several official visits this fall but the Vols have not yet made a list of his intended visits. As with other entries, certainly one to watch.

I think it is very safe to say at this point that UT will end up with a consensus top 5 class. While we will fill our remaining spots with mostly highly regarded prospects, many other schools will do the same. Any time you can get a top 5 class though you take it and don’t worry about what anyone else is doing.

The promising thing is that Lane Kiffin doesn’t seem content to just land a top class, he is hell-bent on stealing players from rival schools. When you can do that, you not only propel your class forward, you set your opponent back in a way that you cannot do with a win in a football game. You are affecting that school in a more important way and hitting them where it hurts the worst, the talent department. I think as the years go on it will become even more important to out-recruit the Florida, Georgia, and Bama’s of the world and if this staff stays together and wins, there is nothing stopping them from doing just that.

Lord Vader and Ooletwah Vol also contributed to this report.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]