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Tennessee football makes cut for elite 2022 Memphis area athlete Kody Jones

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - OCTOBER 05: A Tennessee Volunteers megaphone sits on the sideline during the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - OCTOBER 05: A Tennessee Volunteers megaphone sits on the sideline during the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images) /
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Within a week of taking the job and National Signing Day for 2021 looming, Josh Heupel is clearly working on defensive backs for Tennessee football when it comes to the 2022 class. On Sunday, the Vols made the cut for a second player who plays defensive back of the weekend. This time, they were trending for an in-state prospect.

Memphis-area athlete Kody Jones, who comes out of Germantown High School in Germantown, Tenn., announced that the Vols were in his top 10. Jones, who stands between 5’11” and 6’0″ and weighs around 180 pounds, is a four-star across all services. However, while he’s listed as an athlete on 247Sports and ESPN, he’s listed as a safety on Rivals.

Joining Tennessee football in Jones’ top 10 are the Memphis Tigers, Ole Miss Rebels, Virginia Tech Hokies, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oklahoma Sooners, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Michigan Wolverines, Oregon Ducks and Cincinnati Bearcats. He announced his list on Twitter.

Jones’ announcement came within 24 hours of 2022 Cedar Hill, Texas cornerback Jalon Peoples announcing that the Vols were in his top five. Coming out of Cedar Hill High School, Peoples was a teammate of UT early enrollee quarterback Kaidon Salter this past year, and he is a four-star on Rivals despite being a three-star everywhere else.

Luring Peoples and Jones to Rocky Top would be a huge deal for Heupel. That’s especially true for Jones, as Heupel stressed the importance of securing in-state talent in his introductory press conference. Prospects from in and around Memphis are key to that.

Of course, the first move for Heupel has to be locking up those committed and signed in the 2021 class, as he’s dealing with a wave of decommitments and probably people wanting out of their signatures due to the coaching change. The decommitment of New York defensive end Jimmy Scott on Jan. 20 leaves them without a commitment for 2022 currently as well.

Next. Five reasons Josh Heupel hire could work out for Vols. dark

As of Jones’ announcement, there were no leaders to land him in the Rivals Future Cast or 247Sports Crystal Ball. However, Tennessee football was the majority favorite on the Rivals Fan Future Cast, so the Vols are definitely in play.

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