Josh Heupel is still active in building the 2023 Tennessee football recruiting class, and that continued into the first day of the early signing period. The Vols picked up a commitment from a local running back who could be a crucial part of the offense in the future.
DeSean Bishop, a three-star across the board, became the second running back committed to UT’s class. Coming out of Karns High School in Knoxville, Tenn., Bishop stands in the range of 5’10” to 5’11” and weighs in the range of 190 to 200 pounds.
Initially, Bishop was committed to the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers from April to December, but he backed out after Jamey Chadwell left for the Liberty Flames. The Knox County prospect announced his commitment to Tennessee football at his school and confirmed it on Twitter.
“Being a hometown hero doesn’t sound too bad.”
— Karthik Venkataraman (@KarthikV_) December 21, 2022
Karns running back DeSean Bishop signs and commits to Tennessee.
Back-to-back Mr. Football winner: He had 2,422 rushing yards and 34 total touchdowns last season.@D_Bishop2004 @KarnsBeaversFB @KarnsBeavers pic.twitter.com/rtDCPmczKr
home🍊 @Vol_Football @coachjoshheupel @CoachMack_Tenn @CoachWalt_ @KarnsBeaversFB pic.twitter.com/uxQAyixYD1
— DeSean Bishop (@D_Bishop2004) December 21, 2022
Although the Vols only beat out the Appalachian State Mountaineers to land Bishop, he appears to be much better than his rating indicates. He was 5A Mr. Football in Tennessee in 2021 and 2022, which suggests he could be a major weapon.
Jabari Small, Jaylen Wright and Dylan Sampson are all also thriving as three-stars in Heupel’s offense, so he clearly knows how to find the underrated backs. Bishop could be next in line, especially since Justin Williams-Thomas hit the transfer portal.
The other running back is Khalifa Keith, but he’s more of a power back. With Bishop, the Vols could get a guy who might replace Williams-Thomas as the future feature back if he puts on more weight. Here is a look at his highlight reel.
As you can see, Bishop always seems to make the right cut on the line of scrimmage. He’s got good vision, which is one of the most important parts of playing running back in the SEC, and his breakaway speed is clearly good enough for the next level.
While Small and Wright are still the main backs, Tennessee football is now well-positioned for a three-headed monster in two years with Keith as the power back, Sampson as the all-purpose back and Bishop as maybe the feature back. That makes this a solid pickup.