Tennessee Recruiting Check-in - Defense

[tsweezy]

Time to take a look at how this seasons recruiting has been since the fans have been rioting over the slow start. Taking a brief overview of the current underclassmen on the roster, their prognosis, how much this cycle matters at the position, targets and progress:

DE

Current Roster:

(Fr) Speed Rusher DE Roger London

As a recruit: 5 star B overall, B- potential, #1 DE recruit in the class of 2022

Staff: 9/10 - A massive coup for the staff in 2022. We needed to replace some top-shelf DL talent and got the number 1 DE in the country. He took a redshirt and then Cano and Anderson surprisingly came back. However he's too good to keep off the field and is getting 50% of the snaps this season. With 3 more seasons to go we think he's going to be a star
 

(So) Balanced DE Douglas Dimmadome Jr.

As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, B+ potential, #3 DE recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 8/10 - Our original Create a Croot from the first year, Doug Dimmadome Jr, son of Doug Dimmadome, owner of the Dimmsdale Dome, is a really good balanced DE. One of the best in his class he's been impatiently waiting for his turn on the field. Similar to London, he's shown himself to be too good to keep off the field and is getting about 50% of snaps. A fun thing we've done is swap him in to be DT2 on occasion to get a faster DL on the field and add snaps for his progressions
 

Fr Speed Rusher DE Armando Medina

As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, C+ potential, #6 DE recruit in the class of 2023                        

Staff: 6/10 - We thought he was going to replace Carnahan as the future pairing with London but he looks kinda eh so far. We still think he'll pan out, but in comparison it'll take a few years before we want him to see the field in starting capacity
 

So Balanced DE Steven Carnahan

As a recruit: 4 star C overall, C potential, #10 DE recruit in the class of 2022                        

Staff: 5/10 - We thought he'd be a great pairing with London, but honestly he didn't progress great last season and is in danger of being completely recruited over. He could end up a career backup which is a bit of a blow to the ego for someone who was top-10 at his position as a recruit

 

Current need: 3.5/10 - London and Medina are fantastic freshmen to have and honestly I don't think we'll sign many who can steal snaps from them. Maybe just a good long term backup or injury starter this year and someone good next season

Class Targets:

- 4* B overall, Strongside ATH - Albert Trigg, ~#8 DE

We've had a good string of DE recruits and there isn't much immediate need. However we wanted to sign at least one really good player a cycle. Trigg was our top target as he was a little overlooked as an athlete but we think he's going to transition very nicely to DE for us

- 4* C overall, Speed Rusher DE - George Harrison, #40 DE

Harrison was one of the best in state players but definitely got slow played once Trigg indicated he was signing with us. Washington state swooped in with flowers promising to give him more attention and he was whisked out of state

- 4* C overall, Weakside ATH - Richard Smith, #38 DE

Richard smith is an ongoing battle. We have him moderately up there in BPA and are duking it out with Tulsa now to see who gets this blue chip

Recruiting Cycle Grade: 6/10

DT

Current Roster:

(Fr) Pass Rusher DT Ernesto Moran
As a recruit: 5 star B overall, D+ potential, #3 DT recruit in the class of 2022                        

Staff: 9/10 - Over the moon to sign Moran to pair with London. Blah blah, low potential, we don't care, he's already so good and is our DT1 this season. We expect him to be extremely important in his career here

 

(So) Nose Tackle DT Johnathan Sowell
As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, B- potential, #1 DT recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 7.5/10 - Honestly the 2021 DT class was so weak that we thought we'd struck gold with the number 1 player. Unfortunately he's been a little heavy and at odds with our scheme. We want fast pass rushers and he's a thick nose tackle. Still, he's great against the run and gets swapped out with Dimmadome Jr.

 

Current need: 5.5/10 - this is a more pressing spot. Moran obviously has one spot inked but Sowell is currently the only strong elite player at the other DT spot as a (So). This is the year to start grooming his replacement or we'll be relying on 3 star A potential guys for a year down the line. Still not crippling if we miss though

Class Targets:

- 5* B overall, Balanced DT - David Castle, #1 DT

Sowell is getting a bit old. Moran is amazing next to him but I think DT is one of the most important positions in the entire defense so snagging a game breaker is always high priority. We made Castle one of our early priorities and he saw the chance to be part of an all star line. Love this signing

- 4* C overall, Pass rusher DT - Marshall Conley, #30 DT

Conley was initially our plan B if Castle went elsewhere but after signing him Conley was really de-prioritized. Both Penn state and FAU took the lead here and the staff is wondering if it's worth a last gasp to try and hop back in (it isn't)

Recruiting Cycle Grade: 9.5/10

OLB

Current Roster:

(So) Coverage OLB Henry Andriese
As a recruit: 4 star, C overall, C potential, #33 OLB recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 7/10 - he was not that highly rated as a croot but he's been a bit of a gem in a bad OLB room. His attributes actually look pretty good for his overall and he has a good archetype for us. He's got one OLB spot locked down, although he might be rotating with Sweezy next season for a bit

 

Fr Coverage OLB Tee Sweezy
As a recruit: 5 star, B overall, B potential, #2 OLB recruit in the class of 2023                        

Staff: 9.5/10 - probably the most important recruit of 2023, he's an immediate upgrade to a mediocre linebacking corps. As a true freshman he could've earned a starting spot but we decided to redshirt him to help the future. Next season he should have a spot and I think he'll do great things for us

 

Current need: 6/10 - I could be talked down from this but have a specter of OLB woes still worrying me. Sweezy actually has one spot filled for years, so we're looking for a replacement / upgrade over Falu/Andriese. That's a medium high bar to sign so we can take one this year and wait or go big next season still

Class Targets:

- 4* C overall, Speed OLB - Art Major, #10 OLB

Art major was a local kid with program ties and the staff assumed he'd come here. Unfortunately that assumption bites a little bit as Virginia has come on hard the last 2 weeks and it's going to be a 50-50 toss up in the end. We really, really hope he comes here or OLB will be a number 1 priority next cycle

- 4* C overall, Coverage OLB - Jim Johnson, #20 OLB

After realizing Art wasn't automatically in the bag the staff got a little panicked. Jim is the best OLB left on the board for us to push and get into a decision for. Hopefully one of the 2 pick us.

Recruiting Cycle Grade: INC/10

ILB

Current Roster:

(Fr) Speed ILB Ricky Billups
As a recruit: 4 star C overall, C+ potential, #17 ILB recruit in the class of 2022                        

Staff: 6.5/10 - We're still searching for a good ILB and I'm not convinced Billups is it. I will say he's just as good as anybody else in the room so his youth might win him a starting role down the line anyways

 

(So) Field General ILB Joe Lawson
As a recruit: 4 star, C overall, C- potential, #17 ILB recruit in the class of 2021                     

Staff: 5/10 - He was part of the same class as Adames, but lost the battle for a starting spot and took a redshirt to get an extra year. Due to his age he probably has a shot to start when he's a senior, but we haven't seen anything from him yet that we really love

   

Current need: 6/10 - same story, we have a handful of *good* options but nobody that stands out as great. Luckily we only play one ILB so somebody on roster should emerge as good but I do want a great player here eventually

Class Targets:

- 4* B overall, Field General ILB - Rogelio Marquez, #3 ILB

I'll be up front here. We fumbled the bag on ILBs HARD this cycle. It's probably the only position I'm actually embarrassed about. Rogelio was an amazing prospect and we were out in front for a while. Of course we knew he wanted to wait very late to sign so we focused on some sooner players. Before you know it, ole miss had dumped a shit ton of points on him and took the lead. Mathematically I don't know if we can get back in it and I won't lie, this miscalculation hurts a lot, he's gonna be a stud

- 4* C overall, Speed ILB - Eddie Dahl, #6 ILB

Eddie Dahl was another very good ILB we had a line on but prioritized elsewhere and Baylor dropped a load to get him quickly. Good news is you only play 1 ILB at a time so we have 2 more cycles to find somebody at this caliber

Recruiting Cycle Grade: -10/10

CB

Current Roster:

(Fr) Zone Coverage CB James Peckham
As a recruit: 4 star B overall, C potential, #4 CB recruit in the class of 2022                        

Staff: 8/10 This is the best CB recruit we've been able to sign. I think he's in line for a starting role next season and has handled himself well in his backup position this year

 

(So) Zone Coverage CB Justin Gsellman
As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, C+ potential, #13 CB recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 8/10 - As a (So) he's finally getting his first starting experience as a CB2. He's starting to pick up some stats and generally getting ready to be CB1 next season

 

(So) Zone Coverage CB Lorenzo Travis
As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, C potential, #25 CB recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 7/10 - Lorenzo is actually not that far behind Gsellman in terms of attributes. He certainly wasn't ready to be a starter this season and is frankly a bit of a soft spot at CB3. We hope he grows enough to be a good CB2 next season but he'll have to fend off Peckham to keep it

 

Fr Zone Coverage CB Wendell Gallagher
As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, C potential, #9 CB recruit in the class of 2023                        

Staff: 7.5/10 - We thought we were finally going to have a good CB class but only wound up with Wendell. Still, he's a top-10 CB in his class and is already a B overall so should fit right in to the pipeline of good CB play we expect in the future

 

Current need: 5/10 - we've lost a lot of CB battles but still signed a few good players. I'm not that bummed about our current roster but this is a position that gets played a lot and necessitates a constant stream of incoming talent at minimum every other year

Class Targets:

- 5* B overall, Zone Coverage CB - Robert Dehn, #1 CB

The most painful decision of the cycle. Our top priority by far, we 20d him from the start. It was looking like a coin flip between us and WMU but Syracuse came in and just barely snuck in the threshold before winning him. Another stinger as we had circled a big time CB as vitally important and one of our only missing pieces. Guess we're getting back in the mix next season

- 4* B overall, Ball Hawk CB - Frank Crosby, #14 CB

Frank Crosby is an ok 2nd piece. He was supposed to be a part of a duo class and now he's the headliner. I think he's going to be a good player and it keeps our CB room serviceable. But man what could've been.

Recruiting Cycle Grade: 5/10

FS

Current Roster:

(Fr) Man Coverage FS Eric Tate
As a recruit: 4 star B overall, B- potential, #10 FS recruit in the class of 2022                        

Staff: 7.5/10 - we thought we had a huge coup landing this kid and were quite high on him. Similar to SS he's got some crowded fields ahead of him. Matt Richardson isn't coming off the field this year or next so is Tate content to wait until his (Jr) year to start? Will he for sure beat out De Leon by then? I think yes to both counts and he'll be very very good

 

(So) Ball Hawk FS Mike De Leon
As a recruit: 3 star, C overall, A potential, #17 FS recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 6.5/10 - we knew we had Richardson so there wasn't a lot of pressure to get a star here. Signed a kid with really high potential and he's been progressing pretty darn well. Sandwiched between Richardson and Tate isn't a great spot to be in (unless you're a sorority girl hey-oh), so he's looking at a career backup life. Still, we like him a lot for that spot if he sticks with us his whole career

 

Current need: 2.5/10 - we just signed Tate 2 cycles ago and redshirted him. I guess getting another good player resets the clock but there's not a pressing need

Class Targets:

- 4* B overall, Zone Coverage FS - Richard Coulson, #16 FS

We've been pretty good at snagging safety targets. Eric Tate is still young but why not take a FS who didn't see a lot of interest. I think coulson will be a good upperclassman starter and resets our FS counter

Recruiting Cycle Grade: 7.5/10

SS

 

Current Roster:

(So) Man Coverage SS Brandon Duffey
As a recruit: 4 star, B overall, C+ potential, #5 SS recruit in the class of 2021                        

Staff: 8/10 - The safety room has been consistently full of talent for us. Burfict has progressed much better than expected which has blocked Duffey from starting. To his credit Duffey has worked on his craft and kind of forced us to try and find ways to get him on the field. I think he's a great player

 

Fr Man Coverage SS Kevin Wells
As a recruit: 4 star, C overall, B potential, #14 SS recruit in the class of 2023                     

Staff: 4.5/10 - took him as kind of a flyer in case we couldn't get the actual replacement for Duffey in a later class. Wells is fine I guess but I don't think we want to rely on him as a top-starter, just as a very good backup

   

Current need: 3.5/10 - same story as FS but Wells isn't super great and Duffey is a bit older. This would be a nice year to get someone but next year is the big fish year

Class Targets:

- 4* C overall, Man Coverage SS - William Ket, #11 SS

Same story with Ket. We have Duffey who's the heir apparent but Ket can be a successor and now we don't have to worry about SS next season. VT made us sweat at the end here but we wound up winning a solo battle and wrapped up the safety position

Recruiting Cycle Grade: 7.5/10

 

 

Defensive Targets remaining on the board and up in the air

OLB Art Major

OLB Jim Johnson

ATH Richard Smith

 

Next year projected needs:

ILB - HIGH

OLB - High

CB - Medium High

TE - Medium high

OG/C - Medium

WR - Low

 

Thoughts? What should Tennessee do better? Is ILB, OLB, or CB the most important position to go after next cycle?

Edited June 14 by tsweezy