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Tennessee football recruiting: Vols 4-star commit Alontae Taylor participating in The Opening Finals

By Caleb Calhoun

Nov 14, 2015; Knoxville, TN, USA; General view of Neyland Stadium during the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the North Texas Mean Green. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 14, 2015; Knoxville, TN, USA; General view of Neyland Stadium during the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the North Texas Mean Green. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tennessee football four-star in-state wide receiver commitment Alontae Taylor is the Volunteers’ lone participant in The Opening Finals.

Due to surgery that Tennessee football five-star commitment Cade Mays had to undergo, four-star Alontae Taylor is the one player committed to the Vols for 2018 already who is participating in Nike’s The Opening Finals this weekend in Beaverton, Ore.

Taylor, a 6’1″ 180-pound four-star wide receiver from Coffee County Central High School in Manchester,  Tenn., was one of Tennessee football’s earliest commitments.

Barton Simmons of 247Sports has him as one of the five guys participants with questions to answer.

Here’s what he said about Taylor.

"Taylor is a twitched up, sudden athlete that has got a lot of upside. As a high school quarterback, though, he’s not very polished at the wide receiver position. This week will be a great test to see how he catches the ball, tracks the ball in the air and separates as a route-runner. If he can show improvement in those areas, the Tennessee commit could see his ranking rise."

Despite his lack of experience playing the position, Taylor is the No. 12 ranked wide receiver nationally, the No. 80 ranked player overall, and the No. 4 ranked player in the state of Tennessee.

While he is the only commitment attending The Opening Finals, there are other major Tennessee football targets are attending.

Most prominent among them is four-star in-state defensive end Greg Emerson, a 6’4″ 280-pound prospect out of Northside High School in Jackson, Tenn. that the Vols have got to secure.

Emerson’s No. 2 ranking in the state of Tennessee Rivals and No. 3 ranking at his position make him a crucial prospect. Rivals ranks him at No. 80 overall nationally.

Click here for a full list of The Opening Finals roster. 

There are 166 prospects attending overall.

The event is already underway, so keep an eye on the impact Emerson and Taylor make. They are the two most visible prospects with relations to Tennessee football.

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