On3 Sports released a few big news bombs on Tuesday with Tennessee on both the good and bad side of it.
Let’s start with the good news for Josh Heupel’s 2025 class.
Tennessee appears to be making a late-stage push for Miami cornerback commit Timothy Merritt before Early Signing Day on Wednesday.
On3 Sports recruiting experts Chad Simmons and Steve Wiltfong both logged an official prediction on Tuesday for Tennessee to flip Merritt with a 60% confidence rating.
Merritt has been a longtime commit for the Hurricanes’ program as he gave his commitment on June 9, 2024. Tennessee did get the 6-foot-1 cornerback on campus for the Vols’ win over Alabama in October, though.
The Birmingham, AL, native ranks as a three-star prospect according to 247’s Composite Rankings but does hold a four-star rating from Rivals. 247’s Composite also has Merritt at No. 515 nationally, the No. 44 cornerback in the in the class, and the No. 22 player from Alabama.
On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine now has Tennessee as the overwhelming favorite to sign Merritt at 93.5 percent.
More from RTI: Tennessee Offensive Lineman Announces Intentions To Enter Transfer Portal
Now for the bad news.
Just two days after Tennessee saw four-star safety Lagonza Hayward de-commit from the program, another defensive back could be swaying away from Tennessee in the final stretch.
Wiltfong and Simmons also logged predictions for Tennessee commit Onis Konanbanny to flip to Florida on Tuesday.
Konanbanny is a four-star cornerback in the class according to 247’s Composite Rankings and lands as the No. 316 player overall, the No. 31 cornerback in the class, and the No. 7 player from the state of South Carolina.
The Columbia, S.C., native committed to Tennessee in August during a summer recruiting surge but did take a visit to Florida for the Ole Miss game in late November. The Gators ended up upsetting the Rebels in that game which helped push Tennessee towards a playoff spot.
On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine now has Florida as the leader in the clubhouse for Konanbanny at 65.7 percent.
Reports from early December suggest that Konanbanny could push to delay his signing until February but both options seem to be on the table on the eve of Early Signing Day.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more on Tennessee recruiting news.
