Tennessee football's transfer portal class hasn't been as explosive as fans were hoping when the window opened last month. The Vols have lost 18 players to the transfer portal and only signed two players out of the portal.
Tennessee has signed wide receiver Amari Jefferson and offensive lineman Wendell Moe Jr. out of the portal, addressing two key position groups. However, the Vols are missing one thing with their lackluster transfer portal class: depth.
Losing 18 players and only adding two players takes a major hit to Tennessee's depth. The Vols are bringing in 25 players out of high school, so that will help with depth, but it could come at the expense of relying on young players with little to no experience playing at the collegiate level.
VolQuest's Brent Hubbs confirmed that Tennessee isn't done recruiting out of the portal during the winter cycle. Josh Heupel and company know there is going to be a spring window and will try to recruit more players heading into summer workouts, but there is still some work to be done before spring practice.
Tennessee vitally needs depth at wide receiver, offensive and defensive line, and defensive secondary. Hubbs confirmed that Tennessee will be looking for players in the portal at all those positions and a running back to replace Dylan Sampson after a record-breaking season.
Hubbs said he expects Tennessee to remain active in the transfer portal, as they have USC transfer offensive lineman Emmanuel Pregnon on campus this week. Signing Pregnon would be a huge addition to Tennessee's offensive line, which is losing a lot this year and needs to be rebuilt fast if Tennessee is going to continue to be a contender in 2025.
Pregnon would be a great start, with five-star plus offensive tackle David Sanders Jr. also joining Tennessee's offensive line next season. Pregnon is the No. 3 available transfer and a four-star player in the portal.
Heupel is going to have to work the portal and make waves with the remaining players to add much-needed depth to the roster if the Vols are looking to make the College Football Playoff again in 2025 and make a deeper run into the Playoff.