Four-Star WR JJ Harrell Decommits from Tennessee, Reopens Recruitment

Tennessee Football’s 2024 recruiting class is back down to 11 members after four-star wide receiver J.J. Harrell backed off of his commitment on Monday night. Harrell decommitted from Tennessee through a post on social media and also announced that he will be reopening his recruitment.

Harrell made the commitment to Tennessee on February 27, 2023, but revealed in his social media post that his commitment and recruiting process became “a little overwhelming” as he was also recovering from surgery at the time. Harrell said that he “rushed the process” and that reopening his recruitment will give him an opportunity to make “the right decision for [his] future.”

“Thank you to all of the coaches at Tennessee for all of your time,” Harrell said in his post. “I am decommitting from Tennessee, and I would like to reopen my recruitment. I am trusting God to lead my footsteps, and I look forward to finding a place that I can officially call home.”

Harrell, a six-foot, 187-pound receiver from Sardis, Mississippi, was the third-highest commit out of the 12 in Tennessee’s class at the time of his decommittment.

247 Sports, Rivals, On3 Sports, and ESPN all have Harrell as a four-star receiver in the class of 2024. On3 also has ranked Harrell as the top prospect from the state of Mississippi in their rankings.

More from RTI: Four-Star Athlete, Tennessee Target Announces Commitment Date

Since committing to Tennessee, both of the in-state Mississippi schools have seemingly made a big push for the six-foot receiver. On May 5, Ole Miss Insider David Johnson switched his 247 Crystal Ball prediction from Tennessee to Ole Miss. Then, on June 2, Mississippi State Insider Steve Robertson switched his Crystal Ball from Tennessee to Mississippi State.

Checking in with On3 Sports’ Recruiting Prediction Machine and Lane Kiffin’s Rebels are running away at 93.3 percent. Tennessee sits one spot back at 3 percent while Mississippi State is at 1.5 percent.

Tennessee does drop back in the rankings slightly after losing such a highly-ranked commitment. On May 28, following the commitment of RB Peyton Lewis, Tennessee was ranked No. 8 by 247, No. 8 by Rivals, and No. 9 by On3.

Now, after Harrell’s commitment, Tennessee drops back to No. 9 on 247, No. 12 on Rivals, and No. 13 on On3.

“A year ago, I never saw myself in this position,” Harrell’s full social media post read. “I have been blessed with a chance to have several options to continue to play the game that I love. Recruiting became a little overwhelming and became very tough to juggle along with my surgery. Because of that I feel like I didn’t give myself a true chance to explore all of my options. I rushed the process. I’m 100% healthy now, and I want to open my recruitment back up and give myself a chance to make sure I’m making the right decision for my future. Thank you to all of the coaches at Tennessee for all of your time. I am decommitting from Tennessee, and I would like to officially reopen my recruitment. I am trusting God to lead my footsteps, and I look forward to finding a place that I can officially call home.”

Tennessee Football 2024 Recruiting Class (June 5, 9:30 p.m. ET):