Meet the Tennessee Football Newcomers: Vols Tight End Devante Brooks
Here is an analysis of incoming 2016 Tennessee football recruit Devante Brooks, who joins the Vols as a tight end.
Looking to build depth at the physical skill positions, Butch Jones is proving that he has reason to take offense to having his offensive system being considered a spread just because he operates out of the shotgun.
That shows because he has consistently made sure to have no shortage of tight ends for the future in his recruiting philosophy, and it has continued with Devante Brooks.
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Brooks’s commitment to the Vols sends a clear message that Jones wants to run a deep rotation at that position too, the same way he does at wide receiver.
A three-star on Rivals, Brooks committed to Tennessee back in January of 2015, one of the earliest recruits for the Vols. The physical tight end from St. John’s College High School in Washington, D.C. represents Tennessee’s continual pipeline in the DMV area as the SEC school best positioned to get players from there.
At 6’5″ 225 pounds, Brooks already has a great height and has shown lots of versatility but will probably need to bulk up some before he sees action on the field.
Early Analysis
Brooks has a great combination of size and speed that you want in your tight end, and he also relishes getting physical. In high school, he played both sides of the ball, emerging as a top pass rusher as well, something that is common for a tight end in college.
Although he may be just slightly undersized right now, Brooks has demonstrated a strong ability to hold blocks on offense and get off of them on defense. Understanding them from both sides really helps him lock up the physical part of the tight end position.
There is also the speed factor, which Brooks demonstrated time and again in high school by chasing down quarterbacks and running backs. That should be able to translate into his route-running on offense, as Jones and Mike DeBord have demonstrated they love using tight ends as receivers.
However, despite all of that, Brooks has lots of work to do in Knoxville. He overwhelmed people with his physical skills lots of times in high school, something he won’t be able to do unless he puts on some size in college.
And on top of that, he is very unproven as a pass-catcher, the other important part to playing the position. Before he sees significant action, those two things have got to happen.
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What Devante Brooks Brings to Tennessee
As we mentioned earlier, Devante Brooks’s commitment makes it clear that Jones and DeBord are stressing the physical skill players to run their offense, and they want lots of depth there.
With junior Ethan Wolf and senior Jason Croom already expected to be the regular players at tight end, Brooks is unlikely to see much action on the football field this year. However, he will be a serviceable guy to provide depth, and if he can improve in areas we mentioned, he may be ready to see some action immediately as a reserve if there is an injury.
In the future, expect Brooks to develop into a great mismatch at tight end. He is definitely somebody who will turn into a reliable player at that position, which is the reason Jones and DeBord recruited him.
Brooks is also going to be playing under new tight ends coach Larry Scott, who brings a ton of intensity, so don’t expect him to take any plays off.
And in 2018 he could become a full-time starter for the Vols.