What Tennessee football coach Josh Heupel has been able to get done over the past week has been unreal. Seven new commits for the 2026 class? You've got that straight, as Tennessee went from No. 55 in the recruiting rankings to just outside of the Top 10. Stellar.
With that said, the Vols will be able to keep surging in those rankings if one particular 5-star playmaker decides that Knoxville is where he wants to call home for the next 4-5 years. That'd be Tristen Keys, who is likely still smiling following his June official visit on campus.
Keys remains an LSU pledge, but he said that his 'final decision' will be coming in the near future. Plenty of Tennessee supporters think he could flip and those same people took notice of Keys showing excitement for 4-star LB TJ White and 4-star DL Dereon Albert committing to the Vols this week.
Will the Tennessee Vols be able to flip 5-star WR Tristen Keys from LSU?
Both White and Albert are standouts for the Jackson Academy in Mississippi. Keys is a playmaker for Hattiesburg High, also in Mississippi. Is this something Keys might take under consideration when he gets ready to shut down his recruitment for good? Potentially.
What Keys is also thinking about is no question the fact that 5-star quarterback Faizon Brandon is 100 percent locked in with the Vols to sign this December and then get to town in January to start his college career. His arrival can't get here soon enough.
Brandon is the No. 1 QB in the country for the 2026 class while Keys is the No. 1 WR. The superstar quarterback hasn't shied away in publicly stating he wants Keys to join him at Tennessee down the road. On more than one occasion he's made a strong recruiting pitch here.
These two playing together would be a dream come true for Heupel and fans. Keys has taken notice of the recruiting hot streak too. Let's hope it makes an impact on him and he realizes that Tennessee is the right place for him.