Tennessee football makes cut for 2022 Arkansas DE Nico Davillier
Defensive ends continue to be a focus for Tennessee football as Josh Heupel works toward building his first class on Rocky Top. With two edge rushers in some form committed already for 2022, multiple others have the Vols on their radar. On Sunday, another edge rusher put UT on his radar as well.
The Vols made the top eight for Arkansas defensive lineman Nico Davillier. A three-star across the board out of Maumelle High School in Pulaski County, Ark., Davillier stands in the range of 6’2″ to 6’4″ and weighs in the range of 260 to 275 pounds. He is listed as a strongside defensive end on Rivals and 247 but a defensive tackle on ESPN.
Joining Tennessee football on Davillier’s list are the Arkansas Razorbacks, Oklahoma Sooners, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Georgia Bulldogs, Penn State Nittany Lions, Colorado Buffaloes and Nebraska Cornhuskers. He announced his list with a video on Twitter.
All Glory to God🙏🏽 top8️⃣ ( No specific order) recruitment 100% still open!!!! @EarlGill10 @smanellums pic.twitter.com/3rgFvlok0D
— nicholas davillier (@DavillierNico) May 16, 2021
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Currently, Heupel has commitments from outside linebacker Elijah Herring and strongside defensive end Venson Sneed for his 2022 class. Both can rush the passer off the edge in their own way. Adding Davillier to that list would be a huge boost.
Tyler Baron, Roman Harrison and Morven Joseph are really the only locked in guys past 2021 who can play edge rusher, so it’s actually crucial that Heupel adds more players who can do that. He doesn’t really have any up on the line at the moment.
Of course, Davillier being listed as a defensive tackle leaves the door open for him to get bigger and move to the middle, especially since UT doesn’t have a lot of depth there past this year either. Simply put, if he commits to Rocky Top, he’ll give Heupel options on where to shore up his depth.
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Unfortunately for Tennessee football, Arkansas is the unanimous favorite to land him on the Rivals Fan Future Cast and the 247Sports Crystal Ball. They are the majority favorite on the Rivals Fan Future Cast. That’s no reason for the Vols to not continue pursuing him, though. His ability to fill multiple needs immediately could draw him to Knoxville.