The Tennessee football program has been very active in the transfer portal over the last five months, on Thursday it paid off again. Former Alabama and Georgia (briefly) defensive back Brandon Turnage has announced he’s transferring to Tennessee.
This is a very big development for the Vols secondary, who recently lost out on Kansas transfer Karon Prunty. At 6-foot-1, 186-pounds, Turnage was a redshirt freshman for Alabama last season, and will have four years of eligibility. He had decided to transfer to Georgia after last season, but in May, didn’t feel like Athens was the right spot, so he kept looking for another home.
He appeared in one game for Alabama during the 2019 season and played in three games during the 2020 season. Turnage was a 4-star prospect coming out of high school in Mississippi and had offers from just about every SEC school in the area. The previous Tennessee staff had offered Turnage, but he decided to play at Alabama.
Due to the new SEC rules for intra-conference transfers, he will be immediately eligible for the Vols. He is the type of defensive back you want in the SEC, with a burst of speed that should help him in competition for a starting spot come Fall camp.
The Vols will be able to use him in multiple ways, so this turned out to be a great scenario for the staff. Either way, he definitely adds depth to the group, along with a little experience.
