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Tennessee football: Five positives that came out of the Jeremy Pruitt era

By Caleb Calhoun

Jan 2, 2020; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Jeremy Pruitt watches his team stretch out before the game against the Indiana Hoosiers in the 2020 Taxslayer Gator Bowl at TIAA Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 2, 2020; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Jeremy Pruitt watches his team stretch out before the game against the Indiana Hoosiers in the 2020 Taxslayer Gator Bowl at TIAA Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 5, 2020; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. (1) waits for a kickoff during the first half against the Florida Gators at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 5, 2020; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. (1) waits for a kickoff during the first half against the Florida Gators at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Loading up on offensive skill players

You could actually make a case for Jeremy Pruitt with defensive skill players as well since he found guys like Alontae Taylor, Bryce Thompson, Trevon Flowers and Jaylen McCollough. However, Thompson is gone, and the other guys still have a lot to prove.

On offense, though, Tennessee football is loaded with talent specifically at running back and wide receiver. Pruitt secured commitments from quite a few elite receiving targets, including Jalin Hyatt, Jimmy Calloway, Ramel Keyton, Cedric Tillman, Jimmy Holiday and the standout guy this year, Velus Jones Jr., who will be a senior.

Meanwhile, the Vols added three new receivers in this class, and two of them, Walker Merrill and Julian Nixon, committed to Pruitt. Four-star Malachi Wideman also committed to Pruitt in 2020, but he is a recent transfer. Still, that’s due to the depth at the position thanks to other guys he was able to bring to Rocky Top.

At running back, even with Eric Gray transferring to the Oklahoma Sooners, the Vols have speedster Jaylen Wright and junior college transfer Tiyon Evans in the 2021 class, both Pruitt signees. They also return Jabari Small and have options for a power back in Dee Beckwith, Len’Neth Whitehead and Tee Hodge. Simply put, Pruitt left Josh Heupel plenty of skill guys.

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