Photo By Donald Page/Tennessee Athletics
National Signing Day is just two weeks away, and every staff in the country is recruiting every hour of the week trying to get the best athletes in the nation to come play football at their university.
Jeremy Pruitt and his staff are regarded as some of the best recruiters in the country, and they have shown off those skills in an impressive display of recruiting since arriving on Rocky Top. Pruitt and his staff are attempting to close out the 2018 class with a bang, but they’re also focusing on getting a strong start to the the next cycle.
Monday, Tennessee offered an elite player in the 2019 class. Defensive back Marquez Beason tweeted out that he was offered by the Vols early in the day.
https://twitter.com/Ezmoneyquez/status/955529710964035584
Tennessee will be joining a crowded list of teams already pursuing the talented 2019 defensive back, as the Vols became nearly the 40th school to offer Beason. He is a composite four-star and the 6th-ranked athlete in the country per the 247Sports Composite rankings. They also have him as the No. 83 overall player in the 2019 class. Oklahoma and Texas are the favorites to land him, but he holds offers from many other major universities such as Georgia, Florida, Ohio State, Michigan, LSU, and many more.
Beason is from Dallas, Texas and plays high school ball at Bishop Dunne High School, one of the better teams in the state. Tennessee offered him to play corner, as has most every school. But he is a special athlete and plays on offense for Bishop Dunne as well. In his junior year, he scored 12 times on the offensive side of the ball, both as a running back and receiver.
The defensive side of the ball is where Beason really shines, however. A look at his film explains why there are so many schools interested in his services.
Beason is a play-maker. Many coaches will say that a great defensive player in high school is often times also the best player on offense. That is absolutely the case with Beason; he is incredible with the ball in his hands. Quickness is one of his biggest weapons, and his 4.3 second 40 time ensures he will almost always be the fastest player on the field. At 5 feet 11 inches and just 170 pounds, strength could be an issue when facing bigger receivers. He is able to make up for that with very sound technique, and he can run with any player in the league. He is a very instinctive player and finds himself around the ball plenty.
Coaches will love his diversity at the position. He is a multi-dimensional player who is good in man and zone coverage as well as off the ball and on the ball. Beason is very comfortable all over the field.
Tennessee has a lot of work to do with Beason, however. Just about every team in the country is interested in him, and comparatively speaking, Tennessee is in a little late on him. Pruitt has proven to be a good recruiter though, and I’m sure he believes he can land the talented defensive back athlete. Regardless of where he ends up, you can be sure you will hear Beason’s name again down the road.
