Three-star linebacker Braylon Outlaw publicly shut down his recruitment back in July as Ole Miss and others pushed to flip the Tennessee football commit. But just under four months later, Outlaw is re-opening his recruitment after de-committing from Tennessee.
“After careful consideration and talking this through with my family, I have decided to decommit from the University of Tennessee,” Outlaw posted on X. “I want to thank Coach Inge and Coach Heupel and the entire UT staff for giving me the opportunity to be a part of their program.”
Outlaw ranks as a three-star recruit and the No. 696 player in the 2026 recruiting cycle according to the 247sports composite rankings. A Pike Road, Outlaw also ranks as the No. 53 linebacker in his class and the No. 24 player in the state of Alabama.
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The 6-foot, 218-pound prospect committed to the Vols last November and took countless visits to Tennessee in the last year before eventually backing off his commitment. Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong posted an expert prediction for Outlaw to commit to Georgia Tech following his de-commitment.
Despite the de-commitment, Tennessee football has a strong linebacker recruiting class in the 2026 cycle. Four-star Brayden Rouse chose Tennessee over Texas while four-star TJ White chose Tennessee over Auburn and Mississippi State back in July.
With Rouse and White in the fold, linebackers coach William Inge and Tennessee has one of the best linebacker classes in the entire 2026 cycle. Both the four-star linebackers rank as top 100 recruits nationally.
Tennessee football’s 2026 recruiting class now contains 23 commitments and ranks No. 8 nationally and No. 5 in the SEC according to the 247sports team rankings. As it currently stands, this would be Josh Heupel’s highest rated recruiting class in his time at Tennessee.
