Tennessee football adds 2021 QB Sullivan McDermott as preferred walk-on

The Waxhaw, N.C. joins the Tennessee football Volunteers as a preferred walk-on.

With an already intriguing competition looming for the spring, Tennessee football is adding another player to its stable of quarterbacks. In this case, they’re bringing in a wildcard th Carolina from Norwho would surprise everybody if he got the job.

Sullivan McDermott, a 6’4″ 205-pound pro-style quarterback out of Marvin Ridge High School in Waxhaw, N.C., is now heading to Rocky Top. According to Ryan Callahan of GoVols247, he joins the Vols as a preferred walk-on in their 2021 recruiting class.

McDermott does not have a rating on 247Sports or Rivals. He received the preferred walk-on offer from Tennessee football inside linebackers coach Brian Niedermeyer and revealed his decision to join the Vols Friday on Twitter.

Given the transfers of Jarrett Guarantano and J.T. Shrout, UT’s quarterback competition in the spring was set to come down to Harrison Bailey, once a five-star phenom, and Kaidon Salter with Brian Maurer potentially throwing a wrench into the process. Bailey is touted for his drop-back passing skills, and Salter is a four-star in the Vols’ 2021 class due to his dual-threat abilities.

Virginia Tech Hokies graduate transfer Hendon Hooker also joined the program to bring more experience, and he is another mobile quarterback. We should note that Maurer also is a guy with dual-threat abilities.

Because of those guys, the addition of McDermott balances out the skills of the quarterbacks on the roster for Jeremy Pruitt, Jim Chaney, Chris Weinke and Tee Martin to have open competition. Of course, that’s assuming they all are around by the time the spring and then next season arrive.

According to MaxPreps, McDermott completed 67.3 percent of his passes for 2,367 yards, 25 touchdowns and 12 interceptions through 12 games this past year. He also plays basketball. Here is a look at his football highlight reel.

As you can see, McDermott is deadly accurate and can float balls into the exact right spot. However, he could clearly use a bit more zip, and he hasn’t been tested under pressure. His high school is located in Union County, which is just outside of Charlotte, and has a Triple-A classification in the Southern Carolina division.

Since he will be an early enrollee to Tennessee football, he actually won’t play his senior season in high school. That had been delayed until the spring due to COVID-related issues. As a result, he’ll be able to compete with all the guys right off the bat.