Camp may be here for the Tennessee football team, but that doesn't mean that anyone has forgotten about what's going on out on the recruiting trail. There are several 5-stars that Josh Heupel and his staff are hoping to land before the Early Signing Period arrives.
The list includes wideout Tristen Keys, who is currently committed to Brian Kelly and LSU. However, the Vols continue to work overtime in flipping him, with 5-star signal-caller Faizon Brandon also helping out with the efforts there.
According to recruiting insider Chad Simmons, Tennessee hasn't given up hope here and he views the Vols as the main 'competition' for LSU. Obviously, getting Keys to change his mind would be huge for Tennessee, but it's also not going to be easy:
🚨NEW🚨 Chad Simmons from On3 “view(s) the Vols as LSU’s top competition” for 5⭐️ WR Tristen Keys‼️ pic.twitter.com/insIKXHNCt
— Tri-Star Network (@TriStar_Network) July 30, 2025
Tennessee football keeps working to try to flip 5-star WR Tristen Keys
Keys surprised a lot of people when he committed to LSU on March 19. It was a huge get for Kelly, but Keys wasted no time setting up other visits even after he pledged to the Tigers. He took officials to Tennessee, Miami, Texas A&M and LSU in May/June.
Keys was in town while Brandon was also on campus, which was a brilliant move from Heupel. Since then, Brandon has been in Keys' ear working to recruit him. The thought of them together in Knoxville is enough to keep opposing SEC coaches up at night.
While Brandon is putting in work, also doing so with 5-star running back Savion Hiter, Keys remains an LSU verbal and nothing has changed on that front. Might things actually change if Heupel brings him back to Knoxville in the fall for another visit?
Imagine Keys gets a close-up look at the Tennessee offense balling out in an SEC showdown. Maybe get him to town for the Week 3 matchup with Georgia? Who knows if that will happen or not, but it's clear that Tennessee is still in the hunt to flip Keys and they're giving him a lot to think about leading up to the 2025 season getting here.