Drew Richmond Signs With Vols

The Vols officially landed their biggest remaining target on Wednesday morning as five-star offensive tackle Drew Richmond signed with Tennessee, ending one of the more dramatic recruiting processes you’ll ever see.

Richmond, rated by 247Sports as the seventh best offensive tackle in the nation, committed to Ole Miss back in September, but he remained open to other schools during that time.

The Memphis native took an unofficial visit to Tennessee for the Vols’ game against Alabama in October. He returned to Knoxville for an official visit during the final weekend before National Signing Day.

It was during that official visit that Tennessee closed in on Richmond.

The highly touted offensive tackle was spotted with Butch Jones at the Vols’ basketball game against Auburn this past Saturday. Jones put the full-court press on Richmond and was able to close the deal. Richmond decommitted from Ole Miss on Monday evening and by Wednesday morning he was a Vol.

Richmond fills a huge area of need for the Volunteers. He’s instantly an option at left tackle for the Vols, a position where they struggled in 2014.

Landing Richmond not only helps the Vols on the field, but it also shows how good Butch Jones is as a recruiter.

Most folks didn’t give the Vols much of a chance with Richmond before his official visit. But Jones proved the doubters wrong by securing the Volunteers’ biggest remaining target.