Tennessee football: Transfer portal ranking shows how much Vols lost
Recently, Josh Heupel has finally started to turn the tide in favor of Tennessee football in the transfer portal. He has addressed numerous key needs at a variety of positions and opened up more competition. However, the mass exodus suffered amidst the firing of Jeremy Pruitt and the NCAA investigation into the program is still having its impact.
In a ranking of the top 100 transfers by Clint Brewster of 247Sports, the Vols lost eight players. The top two players both left UT: linebacker Henry To’o To’o of the Alabama Crimson Tide and running back Eric Gray of the Oklahoma Sooners.
It gets worse. Tennessee football lost three of the top 10 transfers, as Wanya Morris, also with Oklahoma, was No. 7. North Carolina running back Ty Chandler being at No. 11 means the Vols lost four of the top 15 transfers, and defensive back Key Lawrence, also of Oklahoma, came in at No. 20, meaning 25 percent of the top 20 transfers left Rocky Top.
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
Jahmir Johnson of the Texas A&M Aggies at No. 47, Quavaris Crouch of the Michigan State Spartans at No. 82 and Deandre Johnson of the Miami Hurricanes at No. 87 rounded out the former Vols in the list of top 100 transfers. Simply put, it’s been a brutal offseason for UT.
Now, to be fair, Heupel’s offsetting of some of this included the Vols adding some players in these rankings. Linebacker Juwan Mitchell, who left the Texas Longhorns, came in at No. 81. Quarterback Joe Milton, who left the Michigan Wolverines, came in at No. 94.
However, that doesn’t even come close to offsetting what the program lost. Morris, Gray and To’o To’o were all superstar freshmen in 2019 and figured to be prominent in the rise of the program under Pruitt until what happened just a few months ago. The same held true of Lawrence and Crouch, although they hadn’t proven as much yet.
Next. 10 historic coaching hires similar to Josh Heupel. dark
Taking all this into account, Heupel truly is taking over a new team almost. So much of the work Tennessee football did on the trail in 2019 and 2020 has been undone, and it has definitely put the program in a tough spot. How Heupel and co. handle that remains to be seen.