Photo: Ben Proffitt
National Signing Day is tomorrow, and Tennessee’s is in good position to make a splash after hosting a slew of recruits over the weekend in a final attempt to bolster its No. 19-ranked recruiting class and build toward the class of 2019. Look for Tennessee to push hard for cornerback and safety help, which are two areas of perceived weakness in its class. Here is a list of some of the prospects who were on campus this past weekend:
Trevon Flowers, Three-star 2018 DB (Tucker, GA)
Flowers was originally committed to Kentucky to play baseball, but a breakout senior season on the football field at safety — after not playing football since eighth grade — has Flowers examining his options. He signed a national letter of intent with UK to play shortstop, stopping other schools from offering him.
This is how the last couple of Days went for me and my recruiting process. Enjoyed my time in Knoxville and Clemson 🙏🏽#Vols #Tigers pic.twitter.com/eejRocOEsy
— Trevon Flowers⛓ (@tresmoove1) February 4, 2018
However, Kentucky recently lifted his recruiting ban and Flowers is receiving national attention from some big-time schools, all recruiting him to play both football and baseball. He’s been rumored to be impressed with both the Clemson and the Vols, but only Wednesday will tell.
Isaac Taylor-Stuart, Four-star 2018 CB (Stuart of San Diego)
2017 stats: 71 tackles, 14 passes broken up, 6 interceptions
Cornerback is a Vols’ position group that could really use a boost from a big-time recruit like Taylor-Stuart. Tennessee has some serious competition for the four-star corner, who has already taken visits to Alabama, Georgia, USC and Texas A&M, also holding offers from Florida and Texas.
Coach Fair Litty #GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/D4SoQl4bnL
— Isaac Taylor-Stuart (@Kingathlete5) January 30, 2018
Taylor-Stuart has already had an in-home visit from UT cornerbacks coach Terry Fair on Jan. 29. He is An Army All-American and the No. 32 overall recruit in the 247Sports composite rankings. USC is the presumed favorite to land Taylor-Stuart, but don’t count out Jeremy Pruitt and his final push to convince the four-star corner to come to Rocky Top.
Jashaun Corbin, Four-star 2018 RB (Rockledge HS)
2017 stats: 107 carries, 1,022 yards, 11 TDs, 25 receptions, 619 yards, 7 TDs
Corbin, an original Tennessee commit, has decided to give the Vols another shot. After committing to the Vols in April, Corbin opened his recruitment not too long afterward and committed to FSU. However, a decommitment in early December has Corbin shaking things up again.
https://twitter.com/Jashaun06/status/958166628134539264
A 1,000-yard back his senior year, Corbin’s most impressive season actually came during his junior season, where he ran for 1,865 yards and scored 26 total touchdowns. Vols coach Jeremy Pruitt, running backs coach Robert Gillespie and offensive coordinator Tyson Helton all paid him an in-home visit on Jan. 29.
Tennessee is among his three finalists, along with TCU and Texas A&M; he visited TCU a month ago and took an official visit to A&M last weekend. With National Signing Day a few days away, perhaps the Vols will benefit from the recency effect of his official visit.
https://twitter.com/Jashaun06/status/956720475031339008
Emmit Gooden, Four-star 2018 DT (JUCO)
2017 stats: 81 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, one sack
Gooden trimmed his final list to three schools: Arkansas, Tennessee and West Virginia. He is from Tennessee and originally committed to the Vols back in high school before he chose to flip to Mississippi State. Ultimately, he ended up not playing for the Bulldogs, choosing to go to Independence Community College instead. The four-star defensive tackle will even be featured on the newest season of Last Chance U on Netflix.
Tennessee visit was a success 🍊🌹 pic.twitter.com/o7CeP9ZBzj
— TheRealEmmitG93 (@TheRealEmmitG93) February 4, 2018
Gooden committed to Arkansas back in June, but turnover on the coaching staff made him decide to look elsewhere, again. He plans to announce his commitment on National Signing Day, bringing an end to one of the most perplex recruitments in recent memory.
Class of 2019
Jadon Haselwood, Five-star WR (Cedar Grove HS)
Haselwood, a Georgia commit, tweeted out that he was in Knoxville visiting the Vols. The five-star receiver has his pick of schools, boasting offers from Tennessee, LSU, Auburn, Ohio State, Miami, Michigan, Florida and Oklahoma, to name a few. The 6-foot-2 standout is currently the No. 3 overall prospect in the class of 2019 and No. 1-ranked receiver. He appears to be a hard commit to Georgia, so UT will have some serious work to do to flip him.
📍🍊#GBO
— Jadon Haselwood 🎱 (@jadon_haselwood) February 3, 2018
Woodi Washington, Four-star CB (Oakland HS)
The four-star corner from Oakland High School in Murfreesboro, Tennessee has blown up in the recruiting world after a breakout game back in September where he held Blackman’s Trey Knox, a four-star receiver who has interest Clemson, Ohio State, Florida and others, to just one reception for nine yards. Since then, Washington has shut down the opposing team’s best weapon night in and night out, and now presumably has his pick of schools.
He shot to the top of most teams’ recruiting boards after a stellar junior season, recording 41 tackles and five interceptions. Washington already has offers from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Oregon and South Carolina, plus more. If Tennessee wants to add him to its 2019 class, they will have to stand out from the cream of the crop of college football’s best.
UT was great ‼️🍊 #GBO pic.twitter.com/QlVEYO5sjG
— Woodi Washington™️ C❌C (@WashingtonWoodi) February 4, 2018
Sheridan Jones, Four-star CB (Bishop Sullivan)
Another top corner in the class of 2019, Jones is wanted by nearly every big-name college in the country. Holding offers from Ohio State, Auburn, Alabama, Clemson and Florida, Jones has the skillset to be a shutdown corner in the SEC.
Tennesee was lit 🔒 #GBO #Vols pic.twitter.com/fSQlwJkuPa
— $J26 (@SJones6_) February 4, 2018
He has the speed and skill to be the top corner on Tennessee’s team, an area that needs depth in the upcoming seasons. He is someone to keep an eye on during the next year.
Devin Boddie Jr., Three-star ATH (Lausanne Collegiate School)
Boddie could be considered a fast riser for the class of 2019. He has offers from Vanderbilt, Virginia and Tulsa, but he could be catching the eye of the Vols staff. Boddie has stated he would like to play close to home or close enough to his family that they would be able to see him play. The Vanderbilt offer was a big one for him, and if Tennessee offers, the Vols could have the upper hand.
https://twitter.com/devinbjr10/status/960176230724259840
Although some schools are looking at him as a wide receiver, Boddie prefers to play corner or safety — again, a position of need for Tennessee. He also has interest from Kentucky, Ole Miss, Memphis and Mississippi State.
Justin Eboigbe, unranked DE
Great visit at Tennessee 🍊 pic.twitter.com/x66cZ2MOvR
— Justin Eboigbe (@JustinEboigbe) February 4, 2018
At 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighing 261 pounds, Eboigbe is a big, athletic defensive end that would fit in quite nicely on the Vols d-line. After receiving a scholarship offer from Tennessee in January, he has shown interest in the Vols. Eboigbe does not have a prospect ranking yet by any of the major outlets, but he already holds offers from Georgia, UT, Florida, Ole Miss, Florida State and Notre Dame.
