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Tennessee football makes cut for five-star 2022 Memphis area DT Walter Nolen

By Caleb Calhoun

St. Benedict at Auburndale junior Walter Nolen, 16, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, at the school in Cordova.091520 Walternolen 05 Msg
St. Benedict at Auburndale junior Walter Nolen, 16, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, at the school in Cordova.091520 Walternolen 05 Msg /
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Quarterbacks and skill players would naturally be the focus of Tennessee football recruiting now that Josh Heupel has taken over the program. Winning the line of scrimmage on defense would seem like something that takes a back seat.

However, as Heupel begins to focus on 2022, one of his top potential prospects deals with just that. The Vols made the cut for in-state defensive lineman Walter Nolen on Friday. A five-star across all services out of St. Benedict at Auburndale in Cordova, Tenn., just outside of Memphis, Nolen stands somewhere between 6’3″ and 6’5″ and weighs around 300 pounds.

In addition to Tennessee football, the Alabama Crimson Tide, Auburn Tigers, LSU Tigers, Florida Gators, Ohio State Buckeyes, Clemson Tigers, Michigan Wolverines, USC Trojans and Oregon Ducks made Nolen’s top 10. He announced all the schools Friday morning in a video on Twitter.

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With no commitments in 2022, so far, defensive line would be a great place for Heupel to start. Listed as a defensive tackle, Nolen is the most highly touted prospect out of the state of Tennessee since Trey Smith and may be among the most highly touted in-state prospects ever.

Although Heupel may bring a lot of flare and fun to the offensive side of the ball, securing a guy like Nolen to help him win the line of scrimmage would be a huge boost for him. Nolen would also help offset a couple of key losses.

Darel Middleton and Aubrey Solomon could both be back next year, but even if that’s the case, they’ll be gone by 2022. Greg Emerson, Kurrott Garland and the other defensive tackles could definitely use more help the next year, and Nolen certainly would provide that.

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Currently, there are no favorites to land Nolen on the Rivals Future Cast or 247Sports Crystal Ball. However, Tennessee football is the favorite by a majority on the Rivals Fan Future Cast. As a result, the Vols should consistently pursue him. Heupel noted in his opening press conference that he wanted to lock down the state. Landing Nolen would help in a big way.

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