Tennessee football made the cut for one of the top players in the country Tuesday afternoon, landing in five-star receiver Mike Matthews’ top 12.
The Vols join Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Clemson, Colorado, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Southern Cal and Texas A&M in Matthews’ top group.
BREAKING: Five-Star WR Mike Matthews tells me he is down to 1️⃣2️⃣ Schools!
The 6’2 185 WR from Lilburn, GA is ranked as the No. 8 Player in the ‘24 Class (No. 3 WR)
Where Should He Go?👇🏽 https://t.co/SAwD01KR2z pic.twitter.com/QpSy5RZzty
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) March 28, 2023
Matthews is one of the nation’s best players, ranking as the No. 6 player and No. 2 receiver in the country according to the 247sports composite rankings. The Lilburn, Georgia native ranks as the state’s No. 2 player.
A big time recruit from early on in his high school career, Matthews is no stranger to the recruiting process. Matthews has twice visited Tennessee, taking in the Vols win over Alabama before returning to Knoxville in January. The Georgia native has a visit to Tennessee planned for the first weekend in April.
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While Matthews has been a frequent visitor at Tennessee he has taken a number of visits to his other top contenders. The five-star recruit has taken three visits to Georgia and Clemson, two visits to Alabama and a visit to USC and Auburn in the last 12 months.
The Vols are one of Matthews top contenders due to their high powered offense and strong work from receivers coach Kelsey Pope.
Tennessee currently has one receiver committed in the 2024 recruiting class— four-star Mississippi receiver JJ Harrell. The Vols are also top contenders for five-star Ryan Wingo.
Tennessee’s five-commit recruiting class ranks 13th nationally according to the 247sports team rankings.