Tennessee is a finalist for a versatile, four-star athlete who will be making his college announcement a day from now.
Eric Shaw is a two-way athlete who plays for Reeltown High School in Notasulga, Alabama. He tweeted out his three finalists on Tuesday and stated that he will be announcing his commitment live at 2:30 Central on Thursday, August 15th. Shaw will be choosing between the Vols, South Carolina, and Auburn.
I will be committing this Thursday at 2:30 choosing between these three school live on @ahsaaradio‼️ #Spursup #WarEagle #GoVols pic.twitter.com/4WfHwbSl8K
— E. S H A W ⁶ (@treyshaw_3) August 13, 2019
The 6-foot-4, 210-pound athlete is ranked as the No. 301 overall prospect, No. 11 athlete, and No. 14 player in the state of Alabama in the 2020 class according to 247Sports. Shaw put out a list of his top seven schools earlier this summer, and it featured all SEC schools.
Shaw picked up an offer from Tennessee back on May 8th, and the Vols were one of many teams to offer him in a four month span. He picked up 16 Power Five offers from the last week of January through the second week of May. He now holds two dozen offers, including 10 from SEC schools.
Tennessee got two visits from Shaw in the month of June. The Vols offered Shaw in May, and he attended a camp on UT’s campus almost a month later on June 6th. He came back on an unofficial visit on June 27th, the last weekend before the dead period went into effect. He’s taken visits to Auburn, Texas A&M, and Florida and took an official visit to South Carolina on June 14th, his only official visit so far in his recruitment.
At 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, Shaw already has really good size and has the ideal frame for the next level. He plays wide receiver, H-back, and linebacker for Reeltown, and he was on his way to a memorable season in 2018 before he tore his ACL just six games into his junior campaign.
The film of Shaw before his injury is very impressive.
Shaw looks like an adult playing among children on his film at times, but he looks good even against the better competition as well. He’s a good route runner on offense, and he has some soft hands. He had elite athleticism before his injury, so it’ll be interesting to see how he bounces back from his unfortunate setback. He’s a very physical player who hits hard on defense and looks impossible to tackle on offense.
In just six games before his torn ACL, Shaw totaled 60 tackles, seven tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery on defense. On offense, Shaw had 11 carries for 248 yards and three touchdowns and caught six passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns. He was also named to the second-team offense of the Opelika-Auburn News All-Area Offensive Team for smaller schools in the area despite missing time with the torn ACL. He also plays basketball for Reeltown.
Tennessee is looking at Shaw as a tight end or at least as an offensive player, and it appears most schools have directed their attention to the offensive side of the ball with Shaw now.
The Vols currently have 13 commits in their 2020 class, and two of them are listed as athletes. Three-star Jimmy Calloway out of Georgia and three-star Darion Williamson of Tennessee are the Vols’ “athlete” commits, though neither project to play tight end like Shaw.
Our Take:
Tennessee is in a good spot with Shaw, but this recruitment feels like it’ll go South Carolina’s way for now. There’s a chance Shaw is a flip candidate as his senior season progresses, and there’s a chance he starts to get even more attention if he shows he’s fully recovered from his unfortunate injury.
The Vols have a decent chance of landing his commitment, but it looks like the Gamecocks are the slight favorite at the moment.
