Tennessee landed a big-time commitment from the transfer portal on Tuesday.
According to a report from On3 Sports’ Hayes Fawcett, former Alabama wide receiver Amari Jefferson is heading to Rocky Top.
The former four-star prospect fills a need on the Tennessee roster after the Vols saw a handful of backup receivers hit the portal in the winter window.
Tennessee pushed hard for Jefferson on the high school recruiting trail but the Chattanooga native chose to take his talents to Alabama for his freshman season in 2024.
Jefferson took a redshirt season with the Crimson Tide this past fall and will have four years of eligibility after not playing as a freshman. Jefferson underwent minor surgery in the fall and anticipates getting back into the swing of things for spring workouts.
As a prospect in the 2024 recruiting class, the Baylor School product was ranked as a four-star prospect, the No. 212 player in the nation, the No. 35 wide receiver in the class, and the No. 5 player from the state of Tennessee.
Jefferson earned the Division II, Class AAA Tennessee Titans Mr. Football award in 2023.
Tennessee rising sophomore Boo Carter won the Mr. Football Class 6A award and incoming freshman WR Radarious Jackson won the Mr. Football Class 3A award alongside Jefferson that same year.
More from RTI: Former Tennessee Receiver Commits To Big 10 School After Entering Transfer Portal
“Amari just came in this summer and just extremely talented, highly touted,” Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said of Jefferson during SEC Media Days in July. “Just versatile. You see with the other sports and things that we can do.”
Jefferson was a former Tennessee baseball commit before he took his talents to Tuscaloosa on the gridiron. It’s unclear if he will have any crossover with Tony Vitello’s program after he joins the U.T. football team, but it is a possibility.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound receiver gives Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava another talented weapon to work with in the lead-up to the 2025 season. Tennessee lost a handful of receivers to the portal this offseason including Squirrel White, Kaleb Webb, and Chas Nimrod, only adding to the importance of bringing Jefferson back to his home state of Tennessee.
Tennessee lost the race for former USC receiver Zachariah Branch in the portal but made a big splash by retaining former five-star receiver Mike Matthews for his second season on Rocky Top. With Jefferson added to the mix, Tennessee is slowly but surely revamping its receiver room heading into spring ball.
Amari Jefferson is the second player that Tennessee had brought in from the transfer portal alongside former Arizona offensive lineman Wendell Moe Jr.
BREAKING: Alabama True Freshman transfer WR Amari Jefferson has Committed to Tennessee, he tells @on3sports
The 6’1 195 WR will have 4 years of eligibility remaining
Four-Star Recruit in the ‘24 Class (per On3)https://t.co/RlUbB6Fk7q pic.twitter.com/WSATEM9vdE
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) January 7, 2025
This story will be updated.
