Tennessee football’s five most underrated signees in 2022 class

An NCAA investigation, a 3-7 season the year before and a coaching change that came with 37 players leaving via the transfer portal made it hard for Josh Heupel to recruit his first full year with Tennessee football. As a result, while he secured a top 25 class, it ranges between No. 4 and No. 10 in the SEC depending on the service you use.

However, Heupel’s 21 commitments address specific needs facing the Vols this year as they return a ton of talent from their 7-6 team. Also, if you take out ESPN’s rankings, his class is top 20 overall and in the top half of the SEC across every service.

Most importantly, though, is that Heupel seems to have found some vastly underrated talent in this class. As we get set to break down that talent, the criteria to be underrated includes ratings compared to physical gifts, versatility and proven production. Let’s look at such players who stand out. These are Tennessee football’s five most overlooked signees for 2022.

Notre Dame High School

Despite being a three-star across the board, Jayson Jenkins was listed on our post ranking Vols most likely to play early. That alone makes him underrated. The same applied to defensive back Desmond Williams, but since he is a junior college transfer, experience is a selling point that takes away from the underrated factor.

Jenkins, however, is just being overlooked. Standing between 6’5″ and 6’6″ while weighing in the range of 250 to 260 pounds, versatility is the selling point. for the product of Mercer County who went to school in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of New Jersey’s Lawrence Township.

Jenkins will likely put on some weight and is capable of playing any spot on the defensive line. That’s a skill Tim Banks values in his defensive schemes, and with Caleb Tremblay and Ja’Quain Blakely gone, Rodney Garner needs to find somebody else who can do that. Jenkins should become a surprise standout for Tennessee football in the process.