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Tennessee football 2022 early signing day recap: The good, the bad, the unexpected

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 29: A general view of Neyland Stadium during the South Carolina Gamecocks game against the Tennessee Volunteers on October 29, 2011 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 29: A general view of Neyland Stadium during the South Carolina Gamecocks game against the Tennessee Volunteers on October 29, 2011 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Walter Nolen listens to instruction from a coach Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, during a practice at St. Benedict at Auburndale High School in Cordova.091520 Walternolen 04 Msg
Walter Nolen listens to instruction from a coach Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, during a practice at St. Benedict at Auburndale High School in Cordova.091520 Walternolen 04 Msg /

Disappointing surprises

Walter Nolen signed with the Texas A&M Aggies.

By far the biggest loss in recruiting for Tennessee football, it was made official on Wednesday. Walter Nolen is a five-star defensive tackle who ranks first or second at his position, in some cases first or second overall, in the nation depending on the recruiting service you look at. All signs for a while pointed to him heading to Rocky Top.

Nolen is originally from Memphis, and while he has moved around a bit, he moved to Knox County before the start of this year, enrolling at Powell High School. That led many people to believe that Nolen would almost certainly end up a Vol and be the star member of Heupel’s class.

In November, Nolen committed to the Texas A&M Aggies. However, there was no panic, as many insiders believed he would eventually flip to the Vols. Indeed, he was named by Adam Friedman of Rivals as a flip candidate just last week because of the late push by UT. Then there was the report by Emily Adams of KnoxNews, citing his family, that he wouldn’t sign Wednesday.

However, Brian Perroni of 247Sports reported on Monday that Nolen would indeed sign Wednesday. The conflicting reports suggested he’d change his mind and sign with the Vols last minute. Well, at 4 p.m. ET, he inked his signature with A&M. As a result, UT lost out.

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