RB Anthony Grant — 7 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Grant is the lone unsigned commitment who was committed to Butch Jones and his staff. The question is will he become a Vol signee? Grant visited Tennessee officially but has also visited FSU, UNC and Virginia Tech. Tennessee's new staff slowed-played Grant in December when they arrived and people in and around Buford High School have felt for the last couple of weeks that Grant was likely to sign some where other than Tennessee — most likely Va. Tech.
LB Quay Walker — 11 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Getting a read on Walker has been difficult. Very difficult. Walker keeps a tight circle and so legit information has been tough to come by. The Bulldogs got the last visit, but Tennessee has been the leader for several weeks. Walker, who wasn't considering the Vols before Pruitt was hired, has more ties to Tennessee than Georgia or Auburn. Chris Rumph was recruiting Walker to Florida, Charles Kelly was recruiting him to FSU, Jeremy Pruitt was recruiting him to Alabama, and Kevin Sherrer was recruiting him to UGA. All four of those coaches are now on Rocky Top. Auburn believes it is out. Georgia people have had some confidence coming out of the weekend, but the Vols have been the most consistent team this month. Right now, this battle is simply too close to call.
DL John Mincey — 10 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Many felt like South Carolina for Mincey up until the last 48 hours and that is mostly because Mincey went into a bunker since his visit to Columbia. In the last couple of days, coaches for South Carolina have made it clear they don't feel confident in Mincey. Conversely, the Vol vibes have been growing and they seem to be the team trending for the South Georgia lineman.
DB Trevon Flowers — 10 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Flowers is a unique story. A baseball player who put on football gear as a high school senior for the first time since the 7th grade. His one year of play landed him an offer from Tennessee and Clemson in January. A crazy recruiting story for sure. Tennessee has pursued him hard the last three weeks, finally getting him to campus the last weekend. Flowers was impressed with the Vols from a football, baseball and academic standpoint. All indications are that Tennessee is positioned-well with Flowers heading into tomorrow's signing.
CB Taiyon Palmer — 11 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Palmer is a former Duke commitment that a lot of schools jumped in on late. Tennessee was one of those, as the cornerback has been such a priority for them. Tennessee got involved with Palmer after falling out of favor with Eddie Smith. Tennessee's chief competition for Palmer has been NC State and indications have been that the Vols haven't been able to overcome the Wolfpack. Tennessee did make a final push in an in-home visit last Friday, but at this point it would be an upset for the Vols to overcome Palmer's long-standing relationship with the Wolfpack and land the cornerback.
DL Otito Ogbonnia — 11 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Ogbonnia has been silent since his visit to Nebraska last weekend. And it's admittedly hard to get a gauge on where he's going to sign. However, there’s not a lot of confidence coming from Tennessee right now. Ogbonnia has family ties to Texas Tech and distance from home could be a real factor. No one is sure where Ogbonnia is going to sign, but it doesn't appear to be trending Orange.
TE Glenn Beal — 1 p.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Of all of the guys on the board, Beal might be the great mystery of them all. Beal has been at one point a heavy lean to Texas A&M. Then Tennessee had all the momentum. The there’s Alabama, who has continued to linger around. Alabama doesn't seem likely given their numbers, but as one person told us earlier today, “No one knows what he might do. He's going to have three hats out there and he could pick any of them.” LSU called Beal this week, too, but in the end he seems likely bound for A&M.
CB Olaijah Griffin — 1 p.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – At one point back in December, Griffin had the Vols out front. But things have not been trending Tennessee's way for the last couple of weeks. Griffin's dialogue with Tennessee has been said to be limited at best the last week or so, although it's unclear how much he's spoken with any school. Griffin is a huge priority for Southern Cal and he has deep roots in Los Angeles. His hometown just seems to be too much to overcome.
WR Jacob Copeland — 2 p.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Copeland tweeted on Tuesday morning that he cried Monday night trying to come to a final decision. Does Alabama have room for Copeland? It seems unlikely but that depends on how they finish on Wednesday. Is Copeland going to stay home? Florida got the last visit and has regained momentum with Copeland, who was a one time Gator commit. Of all the coaches recruiting the receiver, Copeland has the best relationship with Jeremy Pruitt, but the common sense selection here is Florida. Then again, the last month hasn't made much sense in his recruitment.
DB Issac Taylor-Stuart – time of signing unknown
Tuesday thoughts – It's odd to see a 5-star prospect who might get squeezed because of numbers, but that may be the case with Stuart and could offer more hope for the Vols. Southern Cal is taking a small class in 2018 and their numbers are tight. Alabama's numbers are tight as well. Tennessee got the last visit and ITS admitted it was better than he expected. He's worn some Tennessee gear since the visit. What does it mean? No one knows because Taylor-Stuart is hard to read. Most on the West Coast think he goes to LA if the Trojans have room. We will see. It's safe to say Tennessee left an impression with the last visit and certainly has at least a non-zero chance to pull off a NSD stunner.
Also of note, we're still gathering info on Emmit Gooden. If he has an LOI from Tennessee, then the Vols will be the choice. If it's a blue-shirt type of deal, West Virginia could get back in the picture.
Tuesday thoughts – Grant is the lone unsigned commitment who was committed to Butch Jones and his staff. The question is will he become a Vol signee? Grant visited Tennessee officially but has also visited FSU, UNC and Virginia Tech. Tennessee's new staff slowed-played Grant in December when they arrived and people in and around Buford High School have felt for the last couple of weeks that Grant was likely to sign some where other than Tennessee — most likely Va. Tech.
LB Quay Walker — 11 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Getting a read on Walker has been difficult. Very difficult. Walker keeps a tight circle and so legit information has been tough to come by. The Bulldogs got the last visit, but Tennessee has been the leader for several weeks. Walker, who wasn't considering the Vols before Pruitt was hired, has more ties to Tennessee than Georgia or Auburn. Chris Rumph was recruiting Walker to Florida, Charles Kelly was recruiting him to FSU, Jeremy Pruitt was recruiting him to Alabama, and Kevin Sherrer was recruiting him to UGA. All four of those coaches are now on Rocky Top. Auburn believes it is out. Georgia people have had some confidence coming out of the weekend, but the Vols have been the most consistent team this month. Right now, this battle is simply too close to call.
DL John Mincey — 10 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Many felt like South Carolina for Mincey up until the last 48 hours and that is mostly because Mincey went into a bunker since his visit to Columbia. In the last couple of days, coaches for South Carolina have made it clear they don't feel confident in Mincey. Conversely, the Vol vibes have been growing and they seem to be the team trending for the South Georgia lineman.
DB Trevon Flowers — 10 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Flowers is a unique story. A baseball player who put on football gear as a high school senior for the first time since the 7th grade. His one year of play landed him an offer from Tennessee and Clemson in January. A crazy recruiting story for sure. Tennessee has pursued him hard the last three weeks, finally getting him to campus the last weekend. Flowers was impressed with the Vols from a football, baseball and academic standpoint. All indications are that Tennessee is positioned-well with Flowers heading into tomorrow's signing.
CB Taiyon Palmer — 11 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Palmer is a former Duke commitment that a lot of schools jumped in on late. Tennessee was one of those, as the cornerback has been such a priority for them. Tennessee got involved with Palmer after falling out of favor with Eddie Smith. Tennessee's chief competition for Palmer has been NC State and indications have been that the Vols haven't been able to overcome the Wolfpack. Tennessee did make a final push in an in-home visit last Friday, but at this point it would be an upset for the Vols to overcome Palmer's long-standing relationship with the Wolfpack and land the cornerback.
DL Otito Ogbonnia — 11 a.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Ogbonnia has been silent since his visit to Nebraska last weekend. And it's admittedly hard to get a gauge on where he's going to sign. However, there’s not a lot of confidence coming from Tennessee right now. Ogbonnia has family ties to Texas Tech and distance from home could be a real factor. No one is sure where Ogbonnia is going to sign, but it doesn't appear to be trending Orange.
TE Glenn Beal — 1 p.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Of all of the guys on the board, Beal might be the great mystery of them all. Beal has been at one point a heavy lean to Texas A&M. Then Tennessee had all the momentum. The there’s Alabama, who has continued to linger around. Alabama doesn't seem likely given their numbers, but as one person told us earlier today, “No one knows what he might do. He's going to have three hats out there and he could pick any of them.” LSU called Beal this week, too, but in the end he seems likely bound for A&M.
CB Olaijah Griffin — 1 p.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – At one point back in December, Griffin had the Vols out front. But things have not been trending Tennessee's way for the last couple of weeks. Griffin's dialogue with Tennessee has been said to be limited at best the last week or so, although it's unclear how much he's spoken with any school. Griffin is a huge priority for Southern Cal and he has deep roots in Los Angeles. His hometown just seems to be too much to overcome.
WR Jacob Copeland — 2 p.m. (EST)
Tuesday thoughts – Copeland tweeted on Tuesday morning that he cried Monday night trying to come to a final decision. Does Alabama have room for Copeland? It seems unlikely but that depends on how they finish on Wednesday. Is Copeland going to stay home? Florida got the last visit and has regained momentum with Copeland, who was a one time Gator commit. Of all the coaches recruiting the receiver, Copeland has the best relationship with Jeremy Pruitt, but the common sense selection here is Florida. Then again, the last month hasn't made much sense in his recruitment.
DB Issac Taylor-Stuart – time of signing unknown
Tuesday thoughts – It's odd to see a 5-star prospect who might get squeezed because of numbers, but that may be the case with Stuart and could offer more hope for the Vols. Southern Cal is taking a small class in 2018 and their numbers are tight. Alabama's numbers are tight as well. Tennessee got the last visit and ITS admitted it was better than he expected. He's worn some Tennessee gear since the visit. What does it mean? No one knows because Taylor-Stuart is hard to read. Most on the West Coast think he goes to LA if the Trojans have room. We will see. It's safe to say Tennessee left an impression with the last visit and certainly has at least a non-zero chance to pull off a NSD stunner.
Also of note, we're still gathering info on Emmit Gooden. If he has an LOI from Tennessee, then the Vols will be the choice. If it's a blue-shirt type of deal, West Virginia could get back in the picture.
