Defensive Signees
Defensive Line
Omari Thomas, 4-star DT — No. 105 overall, No. 10 DT
“The first scholarship that we got in today was Omari Thomas out of Briercrest. A guy that can play anywhere up and down the line of scrimmage, he’s 6-4, 300 pounds, a guy that could play defensive end all the way to nose guard. A guy we’ll probably start outside and work our way around but is a guy that can play all three downs. A very good basketball player, also plays tennis, so that tells you what kind of athletic ability he has there.”
Dominic Bailey, 4-star DT — No. 212 overall, No. 20 DT
“Dominic Bailey is a guy that’s been committed to us for a long time out of St. Francis Academy in Baltimore, Maryland. I went and watched these guys practice, and I thought it was the Pittsburgh Steelers out there at practice (because) their high school team was so big. The guys he’s practiced against every single day are all guys that are probably going to college, so he’s going to be used to the wear and tear when he gets here. Again, a guy that’s used to winning and was sold on UT from the first day that he got here.”
Reginald Perry, 3-star DT — No. 728 overall, No. 60 DT
“RJ Perry out of Birmingham, Alabama, is a very unique athlete. He is 6-6, 305 pounds and has 35-inch arms. He played tight end some in high school, played left tackle, played defensive line, and also played a little bit of wide receiver. That’s kind of an unusual combination. You go watch him play basketball, a very good basketball player, but a guy that we felt like was exactly what we were looking for when it comes to the defensive side of the ball.”
Linebackers
Tyler Baron, 4-star SDE — No. 212 overall, No. 5 SDE
“Tyler Baron, a local product here, is a guy we targeted early on two years ago and we felt like is one of the best players in the country. He has a unique blend of size and speed, is 6-4, 265 pounds that could play all four downs, could probably play up and down the line of scrimmage. He is a guy we see as an outside linebacker. For us, when we are looking for that, we are looking for 4-3 defensive ends, guys that can come off the edge and a guy that can play all three downs.”
Bryson Eason, 4-star ILB — No. 316 overall, No. 14 ILB
“When you talk about inside linebackers, (you start with) Bryson Eason. (He’s a) 6-2, 270-pound guy, large man, big hands. You’re talking about a bumping guy that is instinctive and can run from sideline to sideline. Played a lot of ball,. Had a chance to go watch these guys play this past fall, and he’s all over the field. Him and French played on the same high school team, and they were tough to get any yards against.”
Martavius French, 4-star ILB — No. 332 overall, No. 15 ILB
“Martavius French to me is a guy that can play all four positions. When it comes to linebacker, he can play inside or he can play outside. He’s from Memphis. We signed a couple of his teammates, and all of these guys, I think in the last two years they’ve only lost two ballgames, but when you talk about hardnose, loving the game, and when you go watch this guy play you can see before the ball snaps he knows what play is really coming from the offensive side of the ball. You can tell he studies the game, he knows how to play the plays on defense and is a guy we’re excited about.”
Morven Jospeh, 4-star WDE — No. 352 overall, No. 18 WDE
“Morven Joseph, we just got his commitment in, is another guy that can play all four spots at linebacker. He has unique ability to rush off the edge, could actually play inside, and will be a great special teams player. He has length, range, and is probably going to grow a lot if you look at his build. Has wide shoulders, length, big arms and big hands, so a guy that probably is going to add some weight. A guy that can play all four spots, is a playmaker, so when it gets to third down and you’re trying to decide how you are going to play this guy, are you going to rush him off the edge or is he going to be a guy that plays inside and playing on the better running backs in our league?”
Defensive Backs
Keshawn Lawrence, 4-star safety — No. 66 overall, No. 4 S
“Keshawn Lawrence is a guy from Nashville at Ensworth. To me, he’s a guy that can play all five positions. He reminds me of a few guys that I’ve coached over the years that now play in the NFL. He has length, he has great ball skills. When you watch his tape, everything he does is with instincts. He’s a great punt returner, kickoff returner, and he’s a guy that committed early in our class and has really been a big part in recruiting the other guys.”
Tamarion McDonald, 3-star OLB — N0. 580 overall, No. 40 OLB
“When you look at defensive backs, Tamarion McDonald is a guy who played again at Whitehaven there in Memphis. One of the Tennessee guys. To me, this is a guy that can play safety, he can play STAR, he’s 6-2, 205 pounds. Big bone density and a guy who can possibly grow into a linebacker, but we will start him off at safety. He will be a phenomenal special teams’ player because he’s a runner, he’s a hitter, has really good ball skills, and he’s used to winning.”
Doneiko Slaughter, 3-star safety — No. 669 overall, No. 50 S
“The last guy here is Doneiko Slaughter. We had him in camp this past year. We didn’t offer him at camp, but we really thought that he had some unique ability in his cover ability. His hips, his movements is everything we’re looking for, and we wanted to watch his senior tape. He had a phenomenal senior year. He had four defensive touchdowns, was all over the field, a guy who kind of played in the slot like a STAR. He can cover, he has range in the back end, he’s instinctive, he’s a ballhawk, and we are excited to have him.”
Special Teams
Will Albright, 2-star long-snapper — No. 3,343 overall, No. 7 LS
“Last but certainly not least, Will Albright. Will is a guy who played inside linebacker on his high school football team. He’s a long snapper who came to camp two years ago, and we felt like he was the best guy at our camp. As a long snapper, we are going to need one next year, and he’s a football player.”
