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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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Pleasant surprises

Tyre West flips from Georgia Bulldogs to sign with Vols.

If Tennessee football wasn’t going to get Walter Nolen, they got the next best player they could get on Wednesday at defensive tackle. Tyre West is a four-star across the board, and while a flip was possible after two weeks of being committed to UGA, it didn’t seem like UT was on the table.

West, who stands between 6’3″ and 6’4″ and weighs 280 pounds, seemed to be leaning much more heavily toward the Florida State Seminoles. Coming out of Tift County High School in Tifton, Ga., he was halfway between UGA and FSU, so it made sense that FSU would be the school to make the late push for him. However, the Vols got him and signed him, and that’s a huge dela.

James Pearce commits to and signs with Vols.

This wasn’t a flip, and James Pearce isn’t as prized as Tyre West, but he’s still a big pickup. A four-star on Rivals and three-star on 247Sports an d ESPN, Pearce hails from Julius L. Chambers High School in Charlotte, N.C. and is an edge rusher.

Standing between 6’4″ and 6’5″ and weighs 220 pounds, all signs were that Pearce would commit to the South Carolina Gamecocks. Josh Heupel stealing a guy away from Shane Beamer is a big deal, and Pearce helps with the depth at edge rusher significantly.

dark. Next. Early signing day 2022 primer

Overall, it was a successful early signing period for Tennessee football given the way they shot up the rankings. Sure, Nolen would’ve been a huge get for them, and his signing with Texas A&M hurts a bit, but the Vols got quite a few other gains. As a result, fans should be happy with what Josh Heupel has been able to put together.

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