Tennessee football is losing another edge rusher to the transfer portal. Emmanuel Okoye, out of Lagos, Nigeria, is entering, according to a report from On3. He will have potentially three years of eligibility after not playing as a true freshman and suffering an injury in his second year.
Okoye played for the NFL Academy in Loughborough, United Kingdom, during the fall of 2022, though he is initially from Nigeria. He got to campus as a tight end, but made the switch to defensive end ahead of the 2024 season. A knee injury derailed it, though, forcing him to go into 2025 without a snap played.
However, he became a special teams contributor this past year and joined the LEO room. In eight games, he produced one tackle. He played 15 defensive snaps across three games.
NEW: Tennessee DL Emmanuel Okoye plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, @Hayesfawcett3 reportshttps://t.co/kSYG7dZ8sR pic.twitter.com/xSnx4QyhAI
— Transfer Portal (@TransferPortal) January 2, 2026
More From RTI: Tennessee Football Assistant Coach Headed to be OL Coach, Run Game Coordinator Elsewhere
Tennessee is now extremely thin at the LEO position. Starter Joshua Josephs is off to the NFL, though he was out of eligibility anyway, and could be a first-round selection. His backup, Caleb Herring, also announced he’ll be transferring on Friday. Another reserve option, Kellen Lindstrom, was one of the first to depart, too.
This leaves Jordan Ross as the key player in the room. Ross was a five-star recruit out of high school before playing a reserve role as a freshman in 2024. In his sophomore year, he posted 23 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. He also forced and recovered a fumble.
The Vols will be looking for plenty of defensive talent to add to the unit in Jim Knowles’ first season as defensive coordinator. One of these spots is likely edge rusher to help bolster the room.
