On Monday, Tennessee landed a commitment from Mr. Football award winner and four-star defensive tackle Omari Thomas from Memphis. On Tuesday, the Vols picked up a commitment from his teammate.
Three-star running back Jabari Small of Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis announced on Tuesday afternoon that he is committing to the Vols in the 2020 class. Small was once committed to Ole Miss, but he announced his decommitment from the Rebels on December 2nd after their coaching change.
Thank you Lord, a dream come true! #COMMITTED pic.twitter.com/vTfta3hBzA
— Jabari Small 2️⃣ (@JMS4_) December 10, 2019
Small visited Tennessee on an unofficial trip along with his teammate and new Vol commit Omari Thomas back on October 26th, and the Vols’ coaching staff began turning up the heat on Small ever since. Now, the talented Memphis running back is part of Tennessee’s 2020 class.
The 5-foot-10, 190-pound back is rated as the No. 647 overall prospect, No. 11 all-purpose back, and No. 20 recruit in the state of the Tennessee in the 2020 class. Along with Tennessee and Ole Miss, he also holds offers from Auburn, Kentucky, Arkansas, Michigan, Louisville, and Memphis among others.
Small finished as a finalist for the D2-AAA Mr. Football award in the state of Tennessee. His teammate, four-star Omari Thomas, won the award. Fellow Vol commit Elijah Howard in the 2021 class was also a finalist.
The shifty running back has been timed running around a 4.5-second 40-yard dash, and he was used in a variety of ways for Briarcrest Christian. Now, he’ll be donning the orange and white next fall.
Small reminds me a bit of Eric Gray in that he can make one cut and then take the ball to the house. I think Gray is a better overall athlete, but that’s no knock on Small. He’s shifty, fast, and versatile. He has good vision and is a weapon out of the backfield in the passing game, too. In fact, he’s lined up at wide receiver for Briarcrest Christian before. On special teams, Small has proven to be a major factor as well.
As a senior, Small amassed over 2,000 total all-purpose yards according to MaxPreps. He ran for 1,538 yards and 25 touchdowns on 182 carries (8.5 avg) while also catching 23 passes for 342 yards and two scores. Small returned six punts for 143 yards and a touchdown and also intercepted a pass on defense.
With his commitment, Tennessee now has 18 prospects in their 2020 class, and 10 of them are from inside Tennessee’s own state borders. Five of those 10 in-state prospects hail from Memphis. Small is the Vols’ second running back commit, joining fellow in-state running back Tee Hodge from Maryville in the class.
