2021 commit flips from Tennessee football to N.C. State

Nate Evans left the Tennessee football Volunteers for the North Carolina St. Wolfpack.

Jeremy Pruitt’s No. 2 ranked recruiting class took its first hit for 2021, although it probably won’t drop the rankings that much. Tennessee football lost one of its earliest commitments to a school on the other side of the Appalachian Mountains.

Three-star defensive back Nate Evans out of Cox High School in Virginia Beach, Va. flipped his commitment from Rocky Top to the N.C. State Wolfpack. At 6’1″ 175 pounds, Evans is listed as a cornerback across major recruiting services.

Ranked the No. 56 player at his position and the No. 19 player in the state of Virginia, Evans was the fourth commitment in UT’s 2021 class, announcing back on Nov. 10. He announced his decision to flip to N.C. State Thursday on Twitter.

More from Vols Football

• How to Win a GUARANTEED $200 Bonus Betting Just $5 on the Vols vs. Florida!
• Tennessee Football at Florida: Five Keys to a Vols Victory
• Week 3 SEC Power Rankings: Did Tennessee Football’s Win Help At All?
• Week 3 AP Polls: Why Did Tennessee Football Drop in the Polls?
• Tennessee Football: Top Five Performers in 30-13 Win vs. Austin Peay

With Evans’ decommitment, Tennessee football now has 23 players in its 2021 class. However, they have the same number of four-stars and five-stars that existed on different recruiting services before this happened.

Technically, Evans is the second player to decommit from Rocky Top’s next class. North Carolina defensive tackle Isaac Washington also decommitted from the Vols, but he then recommitted back in early March. That was before the Vols got on their red-hot recruiting roll.

Big Orange Country now has just three defensive backs committed for next year, but athletes Elijah Howard and Kaemen Marley could also both play the position. Howard is almost certain to play defensive back when he arrives.

As a result, while Evans is a solid player, he’s not the a devastating loss for Pruitt and co. There are numerous other elite players in the system, and everybody responsible for putting that class in the top five is still committed.

It’s possible that Evans decommitted because of how loaded the class is. After all, there may not be room for him to start with Tennessee football. Either way, everybody should wish him luck as he heads to N.C. State.