Tennessee football recruiting: 4-star 2020 QB Harrison Bailey commits to Vols
Tennessee football recruiting got a big commitment from 2020 four-star quarterback Harrison Bailey, who picked the Volunteers over the Michigan Wolverines.
Before even finding a new offensive coordinator, Tennessee football added another quarterback to its future roster. Jeremy Pruitt struck gold on Thursday with a huge commitment for the Vols’ 2020 recruiting class.
Pro-style quarterback Harrison Bailey committed to the Vols over the Michigan Wolverines, meaning Jeremy Pruitt beat out Jim Harbaugh, according to Jesse Simonton on Volquest. He joins teammate Ramel Keyton, his favorite target at wide receiver this past year and a four-star member of the 2019 recruiting class who has committed to the Vols.
A four-star on Rivals himself, Bailey is the No. 27 ranked player nationally for 2020 and the No. 2 ranked pro-style quarterback. He comes from Marietta High School in Marietta, Ga. and is the No. 5 ranked player in the state.
According to MaxPreps, Bailey completed over 63.3 percent of his passes for 2,809 yards, 29 touchdowns and 6 interceptions in just nine games in 2018. He also averaged nearly eight and a half yards an attempt and over 13 yards a completion. However, he did miss portions of 2017 and 2018 due to injury. Here’s a look at his highlight reel through most of his starts this past season.
As you can see, Bailey is a pure drop-back passer with a big arm. But he can also stand in the pocket and take a hit while throwing the ball. That’s a huge plus for Tennessee football, as this is clearly the type of player Pruitt likes.
In more good news for the program, Rivals also reports that Bailey and his family are considering doing what Jake Bentley did in 2016 and reclassifying into the 2019 class. That would get him on campus next year, and he would have two seasons along with JT Shrout and Brian Maurer to study under Jarrett Guarantano.
All of a sudden, the quarterback race to replace Guarantano is going to be very interesting. With Maurer, Bailey and Shrout, Pruitt and whomever his offensive coordinator will be should have an amazing list of options. Even after a 5-7 season, Tennessee football is scoring big in getting talent. This can only be exciting for Rocky Top.