Tennessee’s streak of landing in-state targets in the 2020 recruiting class continued on Wednesday evening.
Darion Williamson, a three-star athlete who plays for Haywood High School in Brownsville, TN, announced his commitment to the Vols via Twitter on Wednesday.
#2THETOP ?‼️ pic.twitter.com/ate6EutTQe
— Darion Williamson (@d_dub4_) July 18, 2019
According to the 247Sports rankings, Williamson is the No. 533 overall player, No. 43 athlete, and No. 19 player in the state of Tennessee. The 6-foot-3, 190-pound two-way athlete only has three offers as of now — the others being from Memphis and Arkansas State — but UT’s coaching staff became enamored with him after seeing him in person.
Tennessee running backs coach David Johnson traveled over to Brownsville in west Tennessee to watch a practice at Haywood back on May 23rd, and he extended an offer to Williamson while there. Williamson attended a camp on UT’s campus on June 8th, and his performance there confirmed what Johnson saw in person in late May.
Williamson was timed running the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds while on campus, and he caught every ball that was thrown his way.
Just because he camped as a receiver doesn’t mean that’s the position he’ll end up playing at Tennessee, though. Williamson is a raw, athletic prospect who could play at receiver, safety, or even outside linebacker in the future. He’s listed as a preseason All-State selection in 4A at running back for Haywood, in fact.
Williamson has a lot of potential packed into his 6-foot-3 frame. He’s a sure tackler on defense and uses his blazing speed on both sides of the ball. He has solid instincts and knows how to read both offenses and defenses. Though still pretty raw, he has immense potential and athleticism, and finding the right fit for him at the next level will be key.
As a junior for Haywood, Williamson totaled 70 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, four interceptions, and two fumble recoveries on defense. On offense, he caught 10 passes for 150 yards.
With Williamson’s commitment, the Vols now hold commits from 12 prospects in the 2020 class, and five of those recruits are within their own state borders. Williamson joins four-star safety Keshawn Lawrence, four-star offensive lineman Cooper Mays, three-star running back Tee Hodge, and long snapper Will Albright as the Vols’ in-state commits.
