Tennessee football is starting to heat up in the transfer portal. The Vols have landed seven commits in the last 72 hours including the biggest fish on Saturday afternoon when highly touted Penn State edge rusher Chaz Coleman committed to the Vols over LSU, Ohio State and Penn State.
Coleman fills a major need for Tennessee on its roster. The Vols lost their top three LEOs from last season’s team with Josh Josephs heads to the SEC while Jordan Ross and Caleb Herring heading to the portal. Tennessee still needs more bodies at the spot but Coleman gives them one high quality player.
The Vols have raided Penn State’s defense this offseason, landing Coleman, safety Dejuan Lane, defensive tackle Xavier Gilliam and inside linebacker Amare Campbell. All four project to have a major role on Tennessee’s defense next season and could very well end up as starters.
Josh Heupel and his staff have now landed nine players in the transfer portal. Six are on the defensive side of the ball, one is on the offensive side of the ball and the other two are special teams additions.
The group includes Lane, Gilliam, Campbell, Coleman, Kansas State nickel back Qua Moss, LUS offensive tackle Ory Williams, Auburn cornerback Kayin Lee, Louisville kicker Cooper Ranvier and Eastern Kentucky linebacker/long snapper Blake Howard.
A number of school have landed more commitments than Tennessee has to date, but the Vols still have a top 25 class due to the number of high quality players they’ve added in the portal. By average player rating, Tennessee has one of the nation’s best portal class to date.
Here’s a look at where Tennessee’s transfer class ranks nationally.
More From RTI: Tennessee Football Lands Commitment From Elite Defensive Portal Target
247sports
- National rank: No. 13
- SEC rank: No. 16
- National rank by average player rating: No. 1
- SEC rank by average player rating: No. 1
Rivals/On3
- National rank: No. 21
- SEC rank: No. 6
- National rank by average player rating: No. 4
- SEC rank by average player rating: No. 2
