The Tennessee football program has lost nearly 30 players to the Transfer Portal this offseason. Most of them haven't found a new home yet, but a couple have. Offensive lineman Max Anderson has landed at Kentucky, and Max Gilbert will now kick at Arkansas.
New Sam Leavitt update is nothing but good news for Tennessee and Josh Heupel
I’ve got some more tough news for Tennessee, as the Vols have lost another player to an SEC rival. This time, former starting cornerback Rickey Gibson III is heading to College Station to play for Texas A&M.
BREAKING: Tennessee transfer CB Rickey Gibson has signed with Texas A&M, @PeteNakos reports👍https://t.co/pWoy6E9zrM pic.twitter.com/MLkWTHf6oF
— Transfer Portal (@TransferPortal) January 8, 2026
CB Rickey Gibson III lands with Texas A&M
Many Vols fans were expecting Gibson to start in 2026 alongside Ty Redmond at cornerback, but he opted to find a new home. Gibson was supposed to be the Vols' starting cornerback this year, and he was, until a season-ending injury versus Syracuse sidelined him, and Redmond broke out.
Losing Jermod McCoy last January to an ACL tear in a workout and the Gibson in the first game of 2025 was painful. The good news from this was that we saw Colton Hood and Ty Redmond emerge. All things considered, who says Tennessee can't develop some of the young corners in the system?
I'm confident that this isn't the end of the world, though. With Gibson entering the portal, Josh Heupel went after Kayin Lee from Auburn and got his pledge. Lee has played in 36 games at Auburn and has put up solid numbers. He will compete for a starting role and, at worst, will provide great depth.
No matter how you slice it, watching another Vol land at an SEC school stings. Gibson will face Tennessee on November 14th, as that's a game that’s definitely going to be circled on his calendar.