There wasn’t much new activity for the Tennessee football program on Wednesday despite it being National Signing Day. The Vols’ 2023 class already has a massive lineup as Tennessee did their work during the early signing portion of the timeline back in December.
Still, though, Wednesday did officially begin the regular signing period that will last until Apr. 1, 2023.
Tennessee currently has 19 players that have already been enrolled, six that have signed their letter of intent, and nine additions from the transfer portal as well.
The Vols did announce the addition of class of 2023 wide receiver Nathan Roberts on Wednesday, a hometown player from Morristown-Hamblen East High School – just about 45 miles east of Knoxville. Roberts is one of the preferred walk-ons that Tennessee has been adding here in the last few days. The Vols also brought in quarterback Ryan Damron this week in the same walk-on status.
The national recruiting schedule has certainly started to see some shifts here in the last few years. As players continue to see the benefits of joining a program in December, the early signing period has increasingly become the primary day for recruits to sign.
While there wasn’t nearly as much activity on Wednesday as there was back in December, talented players across the country still found their home and signed on the dotted line.
Here’s how Tennessee’s recruiting class rankings shaped out after the National Signing Day event on Wednesday:
247Sports
- Pre-Early Signing Day: No. 9
- Early Signing Day (Dec. 22): No. 10
- National Signing Day (Feb. 1): No. 9
- No. 4 in the SEC
- One five-star, 12 four-stars, 12 three-stars
Rivals
- Pre-Early Signing Day: No. 10
- Early Signing Day (Dec. 22): No. 11
- National Signing Day (Feb. 1): No. 12
- No. 4 in the SEC
- One five-star, 12 four-stars, 12 three-stars
On3 Sports
- Pre-Early Signing Day: No. 11
- Early Signing Day (Dec. 22): No. 12
- National Signing Day (Feb. 1): No. 12
- No. 5 in the SEC
- One five-star, 11 four-stars, 13 three-stars
More from RTI: Tennessee Makes Four-Star Linebacker’s Top Five
During this past Saturday’s basketball game between No. 4 Tennessee and No. 10 Texas in Knoxville, head coach Josh Heupel brought out the newest football players to the court for a moment in front of the crowd.
Thompson-Boling Arena immediately began cheering for the newest Volunteer football players before head coach Josh Heupel took over on the mic.
“Really proud of what these guys have accomplished in 2022,” Heupel said while pointing back to his players. “None of that happens without you guys’ support. The journey has been fun but the best is yet to come. These guys are new enrollees, let’s give them one more big round of applause!”
2 Responses
The recruiting looks good for this next season. There is a good one UT missed. He is Donovan Bateman of Andrews High School in Andrews, N.C. A great QB who reminds me of me seeing Josh Heipel highlights when he played in high school. Coach Brown of NCU is interested and wants to possibly bring him in as a preferred walk on. Andrews even beat Murphy High, a powerhouse in Western Carolina this past year. I was the one who recommended Carl Pickens to Majors when Pickens was a sophmore at Murphy High back in approximately 1987. Pickens made All American on two different teams. It may pay you to get some film on Bateman and see for yourself. He appears weven better as defensive back and He led Andrews to a state championship spot. GO VOLS ! ! !
I remember Pickens making that amazing return against LSU as a freshman, him as the defensive MVP of the Cotton Bowl when Chuck Webb went off, and then as a receiver…my goodness. He was also great at the Bengals, but the crappy teams didn’t get the media coverage back then. I wonder sometimes why he isn’t mentioned among the Tennessee greats.