Tennessee football made its biggest splash in the transfer portal to date Saturday afternoon when Penn State edge rusher Chaz Coleman committed to the Vols over Ohio State, LSU and South Carolina.
The early speculation was that Ohio State was the frontrunner for Coleman when he first hit the portal. Coleman is an Ohio native and the Buckeyes were in the running during his original recruitment in the 2025 class. On3 Sports’ Pete Nakos reported last week that Ohio State was the school “to keep tabs on” for Coleman, but that Tennessee was in the mix for schools to watch. The Gamecocks and the Tigers were also late players in Coleman’s recruitment.
Tennessee ended up winning that battle, though. The Vols got the second of three visits with Coleman visiting Knoxville between trips to LSU and Ohio State. South Carolina was pushing to get a fourth visit but Tennessee’s staff reportedly got an in-home visit with Coleman Saturday morning and got to the finish line.
Coleman missed some time due to injury during his true freshman season last year, but he’ll be one of the most important players on the field for the Vols in 2026.
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Despite missing some time in November due to injury, Coleman still played in nine games with the Nittany Lions while racking up eight tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries, and one pass breakup. He didn’t start any games for Penn State last year, but was looked at as an impact player who was just getting the engine warmed up on his career.
Overall, the 6-foot-4 EDGE rusher earned a 78.5 grade from Pro Football Focus on the season, with an astounding 90.6 game grade in the Nittany Lions’ loss to Ohio State. Coleman led all freshmen EDGE rushers with a 90.6 pass rush grade last season, despite missing some time on the field.
247Sports has Coleman listed as the No. 5 overall player and the No. 1 EDGE rusher in the portal this cycle.
Coleman’s addition to the Tennessee roster is even more valuable considering what the Vols have lost through the portal this month. With Caleb Herring and Jordan Ross both departing through the portal already, bringing in a young, dominant player like Coleman is exactly what Tennessee needed to shake things up. His commitment is undoubtedly the biggest win for the Vols so far this cycle.
Coleman is the third Penn State defender to follow Jim Knowles to Tennessee, joining defensive tackle Xavier Gilliam and inside linebacker Amare Campbell. The Vols also bolster portal commitments from Kansas State defensive back Qua Moss, LSU offensive tackle Ory Williams, Auburn cornerback Kayin Lee, Louisville kicker Cooper Ranvier and Eastern Kentucky long snapper/linebacker Blake Howard.
