Tennessee is already in on one highly-rated outside linebacker in the 2018 class. Now it appears they may be in on a second one.
The Vols are the favorites now to land four-star outside linebacker J.J. Peterson in the 2018 class. Peterson is ranked as the No. 44 overall prospect and 2nd-ranked outside linebacker in the class according to the 247Sports Composite. And now it appears the No. 3 outside linebacker in the 2018 cycle is also considering the Vols.
Quay Walker is a four-star prospect and the No. 65 overall recruit in the 2018 class per the 247Sports Composite. He is also from Georgia like Peterson, and he’s currently committed to Alabama. Peterson was never committed to the Tide, but they were considered his favorites for a long time.
That is, until Jeremy Pruitt left for Tennessee.
Once Pruitt was hired as the Vols’ head coach and began recruiting for Tennessee, Peterson began to change his tune. Kevin Sherrer, who serves as Georgia’s outside linebackers coach and will reportedly be Pruitt’s defensive coordinator, has also been pivotal in Peterson’s recruitment. And now both are at Tennessee.
And just like with Peterson, Walker is starting to reconsider his options because of Pruitt and Sherrer.
In an interview with Chris Kirschner of SEC Country, Walker said he’s “unsure” about his commitment to the Tide because of the departure of Pruitt.
“I was looking forward to being coached by Coach Pruitt,” Walker told Kirschner. “That plays a big role in it. And then sometimes I hear rumors about Coach Derrick Ansley (Alabama’s defensive backs coach) leaving. That’s my main recruiter, so it’s all about coaches that I can trust and that I know I can go to just in case I can’t talk to my mom or something. I can go and talk to them.
“So pretty much Coach Pruitt leaving, I heard rumors about Coach Ansley leaving, and my heart pretty much changed a little bit. I’m not going to lie to you about it. That’s what happened, though.”
Pruitt isn’t the only Vol coach who has had an impact on Walker thus far, though. Kevin Sherrer recruited him hard at Georgia, and now he’s recruiting him to Tennessee.
“I’ve had like five or six in-home visits with Coach Sherrer,” Walker stated. “As soon as he left and went to Tennessee, he came like two times. That’s going to be big.”
Right now, Walker is scheduled to visit Florida on January 12th, Georgia on January 19th, and Auburn on January 28th. He hasn’t planned an official visit to Tennessee yet, but he’s expected to decide on his final visits in the near future.
It appears as though Walker may be deciding between Alabama and Tennessee for his final official visit. If the Vols can land a visit from Walker, they stand a fighting chance with the rest of the schools recruiting Walker.
Tennessee has made tons of progress with several highly-rated players since Jeremy Pruitt took over as head coach. Quay Walker is yet another name to add to that list, and the Vols will be pushing hard to land him.
