On Friday, Penn State safety King Mack made the decision to enter the NCAA transfer portal. This comes after the coaching change from James Franklin to Matt Campbell.
Mack is projected to field plenty of interest from teams across the country, but Tennessee football has a unique advantage. The Vols just hired Nittany Lions defensive coordinator Jim Knowles and safeties coach Anthony Poindexter. According to a report from Pete Nakos of On3, Tennessee is ‘a school to watch’ in his upcoming recruitment.
Mack just finished his junior season with a career-high 58 tackles, three passes deflected, half a sack and an interception. His pick was against future Heisman Trophy winner and Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, as well.
Sources tell @On3sports that Tennessee is a school to watch for King Mack. https://t.co/a1T5skgT6G https://t.co/u4LR1V1kYW
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos) January 2, 2026
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Mack has had a unique path to this point. While his upcoming choice will be his third school in four years, he’s entered the transfer portal in every season. The safety, a former top-100 recruit via 247, began his career at Penn State. However, after one year, he transferred to Alabama to play for Kalen DeBoer in his first year with the Tide.
After the lone year with Alabama, in which he played at Neyland Stadium in a loss to UT, he went back to play for the Nittany Lions. Now, he’ll have one year of eligibility remaining.
Tennessee is going through an overhaul of its defense, and safety seems to be one of the priorities. The Vols are losing starter Andre Turrentine, but will return his partner at safety, Edrees Farooq. Backup Kaleb Beasley is also projected to return.
