After seeing two former Vols land with Coach Prime’s Buffaloes this past week, Tennessee went out and got a former Colorado player for itself on Friday.
According to a report from On3 Sports’ Hayes Fawcett, Colorado cornerback Colton Hood has committed to Tennessee with three seasons of eligibility remaining. Hood gives the Vols a nice young talent for the secondary and one that could be in Knoxville for multiple seasons in his development.
Hood, a native of McDonough, GA, originally spent his first collegiate season with the Auburn Tigers in 2023 but only played in four games, resulting in a redshirt for his first season. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound cornerback then transferred to Colorado for the 2024 season to learn under head coach Deion Sanders.
While with the Buffaloes, Hood tallied 24 total tackles (20 solo), six pass deflections, and two interceptions. Hood’s first career interception came against Kansas State’s Avery Johnson as he returned it 59 yards, while his second came the following week against Arizona with a 46-yard interception. While neither went for touchdowns, both big plays completely flipped the field for the Buffs’ offense.
Hood also had a role on special teams with 119 kick return yards on six attempts throughout the 13-game schedule.
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As a recruit, Hood was a four-star prospect in the 2023 class, according to 247 Sports’ Composite Rankings. The Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy product originally took his talents to Auburn for one year before transferring to Colorado for one year.
Hood’s transfer from Colorado to Tennessee follows two former Vols departing Knoxville for Boulder earlier this week. Offensive lineman Larry Johnson III and defensive back/safety John Slaughter will join the Buffaloes’ program out of the portal.
Hood is Tennessee’s seventh transfer portal addition this offseason, alongside OL Wendell Moe Jr., OL Sam Pendleton, WR Amari Jefferson, and RB Star Thomas from the winter window, and DL Josh Schell and QB Joey Aguilar from the spring window.
Tennessee lost cornerback Jordan Matthews to Vanderbilt during the winter window, but will return starters Rickey Gibson III and Jermod McCoy this upcoming season. McCoy’s situation is interesting, though, as the projected first-round NFL Draft pick in 2026 tore his ACL this past January during a workout in his home state of Texas. Tennessee DB Coach Willie Martinez says that McCoy is going through his rehab and is still active with the team, but Hood’s addition obviously gives Tennessee some added depth and insurance at a position that could see a bit of distortion until McCoy works his way back to the field.
Tennessee also returns rising redshirt senior Jalen McMurray and rising sophomore Kaleb Beasley at the cornerback positions, though Martinez often prides his defensive backs on being able to know and execute multiple positions in the secondary.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee football news and coverage this offseason.
