Tennessee will need to replenish their depth at safety in the 2019 recruiting class. The Vols will be losing Todd Kelly Jr. and Micah Abernathy to graduation after the 2018 season, and it’s likely that Nigel Warrior will declare early after his junior season this year. That doesn’t leave Tennessee with much in the way of depth for 2019.
Safety is a big priority for the Vols in this recruiting cycle. And they reached out to offer one of the top safeties in the 2019 class on Thursday morning.
Nick Cross, a four-star safety out of Hyattsville, Maryland, tweeted out on Thursday morning that he was “enthralled” to receive a scholarship offer from Tennessee.
Enthralled to say I have received an offer from the University of Tennessee! #SEC #GoVols ?@DMCoachBrooks @DenocD @HamiltonESPN pic.twitter.com/yFjhxvqq79
— Nick Cross (@Nick_Cross26) March 8, 2018
Cross is rated as the No. 183 overall player and No. 10 safety in the 2019 recruiting class per the 247Sports Composite rankings. The 6-foot-1, 207 pound safety already holds offers from Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Ohio State, LSU, and many others.
A look at his film shows that Cross is a hard-hitting safety with some solid ball skills. He can lay the lumber on the ball carrier, and he knows how to play the ball in coverage. His film doesn’t show him in pass coverage a ton, but he does a good job whenever he is. He’s not easy to escape either, as Cross is a sure tackler who can bring down shifty running backs, receivers, and quarterbacks.
Toughness is a must at the safety position, and Cross certainly has that. It will be difficult for the Vols to pull him to Tennessee, but expect Jeremy Pruitt and his staff to pursue Cross and other hard-hitting safeties like him in this class.
