Well, just when Tennessee needed some good recruiting news, things somehow got even worse. Just one day after five-star running back David Gabriel-Georges received a prediction from Rivals to commit to Ohio State, Tennessee was hit with more bad news on the recruiting trail.
Josh Heupel loses a big-time Tennessee DL target to an SEC foe
Another tough recruiting development for Tennessee: five-star wide receiver Easton Royal has canceled his visit to Knoxville. Royal has been one of Josh Heupel’s top flip targets for a while, but this latest update makes it seem increasingly unlikely that the Vols will be able to pull him away from Texas.
Just a week ago, Royal had some really good quotes about the Vols, saying: “Tennessee is one of the top three at producing receivers, and I saw the statistics before he got to Tennessee and how he develops receivers." Royal also said, “They’ve had 800-yard receivers, Biletnikoff winners, draft picks. They showed me the route tree, how it translates to NFL offense, in-game concepts, and NFL teams running the same thing this past season.”
BREAKING: #LSU target and #Texas commit, Easton Royal has canceled his scheduled visits to #OleMiss and #Tennessee.
— CJ (TigerBait.com) (@CJFWrites) June 2, 2026
The #1 WR in the country will still visit #Florida on June 12 before returning to Austin on June 19. pic.twitter.com/g1WVVHbuBp
Josh Heupel, Tennessee no longer in the running for Easton Royal
This one hurts because it felt like Tennessee was starting to gain some momentum in the recruitment. If there’s one position where the Vols have plenty of depth, it’s wide receiver, so missing out here isn’t the end of the world. Still, it would have been exciting to add another elite playmaker to a group that already includes TK Keys and Braylon Staley heading into next season.
There could also be another development from this. Josh Heupel and the staff might now really turn up the heat on Eric McFarland III, an IMG Academy five-star wideout who visited Tennessee on May 21. He has official visits scheduled with Georgia, Texas A&M, Florida, and Ohio State, so there is a lot of competition. However, he does seem to really like Knoxville. With Tennessee missing out on Royal, the Vols can now apply more pressure on McFarland.
On one hand, you feel bad for Josh Heupel and understand that this is a tough job. On the other hand, he hasn’t done a great job building off last year’s successful class in Knoxville. Tennessee is currently ranked No. 39 in the country in the recruiting rankings, and the Vols have just three 247Sports Composite four-stars. I don’t think this is from a lack of effort from Heupel and his staff, as recruiting is a very difficult business. You’re going to lose more battles than you win, and that’s the reality, but eventually you need to see the ball go through the hoop.
In the meantime, hopefully Josh Heupel can have a big weekend and start adding a few more commits to the fold, as the fanbase could really use some positive recruiting news.
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