Nigel Knott
Cornerback – 2016 Class
5-11, 171 pounds
Madison, Miss. (Germantown)
Other top offers
Oregon, FSU, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Ole Miss
Status
Tennessee made the big step of getting Knott on campus in the spring, putting the Vols firmly in the race. But Tennessee is swimming in very deep water on this one, as virtually every top program in the nation is after the top-100 player. Knott named Oregon his early leader and Alabama and the Mississippi schools have the geographic edge. Knott is an Ole Miss legacy, but his father played for the current DBs coach at Oregon, so the connections edge goes to those two schools. Knott announced in early June that he will return to Knoxville for the Orange Carpet Weekend on June 19.
Ratings
247Sports: ★★★★
ESPN.com: ★★★★
Rivals.com: ★★★★
Scout.com: ★★★★
RTI average: 4-stars
How He Fits
Knott is fearless corner who plays bigger than he is. He has a nose for the ball – piling up nearly 10 tackles per game as a junior and adding four interceptions and 15 more pass deflections. He’s a menace on special teams as well, blocking multiple kicks in his film.
He’s not one of those long, lanky corners that are in demand, but he plays with an aggressive mentality that make him more than capable of being a starting CB at a high level. We expect Tennessee to try to take a few corners in this class with the possibility of Cam Sutton leaving early for the NFL looming after the 2015 season.
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