War Room: Recruiting nuggets, baseball, hoops and more
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We begin this edition of the War Room as we always do. The War Room is a collective effort of Tennessee notes and news gathered throughout the week by the Volquest staff. And now, it’s on with the news.
Tennessee will look to get good news on the recruiting front later today as offensive lineman William Satterwhite is the next Vol target to come off the board. Satterwhite has played this close to the vest and has kept everyone guessing, especially at the first of the week. While it wouldn’t be surprising for another twist or turn in this one given the way it has played out, there is reason for optimism from the Tennessee side heading into the announcement later in the day. We expect the announcement to come on social media sometime this afternoon.
From here there is plenty still up in the air. There are several prospects we feel good about but in all honesty and in the spirit of full transparency there are no locks to Tennessee. All the talk of silent commits in late June is just talk. Nobody left on the board has told Tennessee they are in the boat and just waiting to announce. That doesn’t mean we think the sky is falling because we don’t but there are no guarantees with those coming off the board in the coming weeks ahead. Again, there are many we feel good about Tennessee’s chances with but that’s far from a ‘Hubbs-50 gif.’
Now on with the rest of the recruiting section..
The next Tennessee target with a known commitment date is Braylen Russell. The four-star back continues to hold Tennessee in high regard as he is a week out from making a decision. Arkansas is working on this one still, as they continue to be Tennessee’s biggest competitor. The Vols would love to add the massive back to this class and appear in a good position to do so right now.
It continues to feel like Tennessee is the team in the best position for Lonestar State offensive tackle Bennett Warren as things stand now. There were rumblings he might do something earlier this week but he didn’t, so it makes you wonder where thing are going as the Vols had all the momentum coming out of the official visit.
Texas A&M is trying to get him to campus during the short open week at the end of the month, while Michigan is circling back into the picture after missing on Michael Uini to Georgia last week. There are many factors in play for Warren at this stage, however, as we have previously mentioned, academics remains among one of the highest priorities as this recruitment plays out. Michigan’s academics are a help to their cause.
Cai Bates and his family planned to have in-depth discussions on his recruiting process throughout the past week. We felt like Tennessee was trending ahead of LSU heading into those, and the Vols continue to sit well for the Sunshine State standout right now, in our estimation.
Amari Jefferson is one we continue to track as an early August decision seems most likely. With each jockeying for position down the home stretch, this one remains an Alabama-Tennessee race. We will pay close attention to see if he takes any trips to end the month. We expect a decision the first week or so of August.
Things have been relatively quiet on the Mike Matthews front since official visits wrapped up as he started focusing on summer school, so he can graduate and enroll early at the school of his choosing. All signs continue to point to USC being Tennessee’s biggest competition here, but Clemson refuses to bow out of the race. A July decision continues to feel like a strong possibility here. He will get back to work on football at Parkview next week as the high school dead period in Georgia lifts on Monday.
We look for Edwin Spillman to do something in the next couple of weeks as he seems to be getting closer to a decision. Ohio State has remained a factor here, but as we have said a number of times, Tennessee continues to make too much sense in this one.
One name we have continued to hear positive vibes around since official visits wrapped up is Jordan Ross. The four-star EDGE jived well with the Tennessee staff and current commits and could certainly seem himself in Orange. This one has had momentum swings on more than one occasion, so take it for what it is right now.
The biggest question remains around his timeline, and how does Tennessee sustain the momentum they gained during the June official visit if this does go into December? He has flirted with a couple of different timelines, including most recently doing so publicly on Twitter, so it will be interesting to watch where, or if, he heads anywhere in July. The Vols will certainly look to get him back to campus as often as possible in the coming months. Florida still feels optimistic about its chances, while others will work to get him on campus this fall.
One prospect that will be back to Tennessee at the end of the month when things open back up is four-star 2025 DB Jontae Gilbert. He has been a routine visitor on Rocky Top over the last six months or so despite his long-time commitment to Ohio State. As expected for any younger recruit, he seems to enjoy each visit he takes to various schools, but the Vols seem to have some staying power in this one. He has built a strong relationship with Willie Martinez and defensive analyst Earnest Thomas III.
Team
It was back to work week for the football team who is less than a month away from the start of fall camp. Camp will start on August 1st.
So for the strength staff there’s still plenty of strength work, but it’s also about getting guys in the best shape possible for the coaching staff next month.
That means for the veterans it’s not about gaining weight. But for some of the newcomers it is. For many on this team this off-season has been about getting leaner. Not losing weight but losing body fat. We noted Ollie Lane last week dropping body fat (and a little weight) in order to move better. Bryson Eason has reduced his body weight. So has Jaylen McCullough.
Of course McCullough has a court date later this month that will factor into things for him this fall. McCullough, who maintains his innocence, remains a full participant with the team.
Everyone you talk to seems pleased with where this team is now and how they have worked over the last 6-8 weeks. Again, who’s going to say their team has been lazy? But this team seems to be putting in the work. There continues to be praise for Dont’e Thornton who has changed his body and you also hear positive buzz about the leadership of Ramel Keyton in that room. Keyton is always a guy who’s putting in extra work and as a veteran guy people take notice.
Competition in throwing sessions has been good and everyone says the competition in the secondary and how that shakes out is going to be really interesting to watch next month.
As we noted last week, there is caution this month in regards to any muscle tightness or anything like that. The work this month is important, but getting to August 1st healthy is the ultimate goal.
On the facilities front, as expected Tennessee got the additional funding for both Neyland Stadium and Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Now it’s about getting to work for phase 1 of the baseball stadium which is expected to be permanent seating down the left field line. With the financial approval the next process is to bid out the work with contractors and get started likely in late August or early September.
Meanwhile work continues in the south end of Neyland Stadium and with the wi-fi project.
The NCAA wait continues. The expectation is that news will likely come this month. The NCAA says that it’s on average 90 days for rulings to be made on a contested case. Today is day 78 since the Vols were in Cincinnati completing their hearing with the committee on infractions. So 90 days would be July 19th, a day before Josh Heupel is in Nashville at SEC Media Days. Speaking of media days, we think Joe Milton will likely be one of the three Vols taken to the event. Omari Thomas would make sense as well. Schools bring three student-athletes. Interesting Milton has an event that night in Greeneville to attend. So that would make for a long day.
Baseball
It was a busy Thursday for the Vols in the transfer portal with two additions, putting their total at six for the cycle. There’s no doubt about it, Tony Vitello and his staff are rolling right now in the portal and are gearing up for another run to Omaha.
Billy Amick’s commitment was huge and is arguably the biggest of the cycle. His versatility will be key defensively and his bat will be welcomed in the heart of the order. Like Cannon Peebles, he was looking for an opportunity to play some defense with (in his case) the draft right around the corner. The All-American will get the opportunity with the Vols where he was limited to DH duties the majority of the time at Clemson this past season. Credit Tennessee for surviving this one as North Carolina made a late push and he visited Florida after leaving campus late last week.
Dalton Bargo is an added depth option behind the plate and another left-handed bat to work in the mix. He had a big weekend against the Vols back in the first conference series of the season where he collected four hits with a home run. He, like Cannon Peebles and Billy Amick, is looking to compete in the field as the freshman was also limited to mostly DH duties in 2023.
Reigning SoCon Player of the Year Ryan Galanie went public with his commitment to Tennessee over the weekend. The Vols were on him from the moment he entered the portal and he really fell in love with the culture and atmosphere of the program. He will be someone to watch in the MLB Draft. If he’s given the right opportunity ($$) he will begin his professional journey as a 23-year-old. If not, he’ll play a fifth year here in Knoxville and be a welcomed right-handed bat with pop in the order – one who can play corner infield or take the place of Griffin Merritt at designated hitter.
You add those three with the likes of catcher Cannon Peebles and pitchers AJ Causey and Nate Snead – that’s one heck of a class for Tony Vitello. And there are still targets on the board.
At this time, nothing new to report on former Alabama right-handed pitcher Luke Holman. As we mentioned on the GQ earlier this week, it’s likely to come down between Tennessee and LSU. That list has trimmed down significantly from the 15 programs who were in play when he first entered the portal to the SEC cluster of Florida, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Auburn who were also involved as late as last week.
Tony Vitello and Frank Anderson have really connected with the family. His dad, Craig, pitched in the Philadelphia Phillies organizations for nearly 10 years and the family likes the direction here at Tennessee and the team that will be on the field next season. Will it be enough? We will see. Holman plans to visit Knoxville when he wraps up his stint with Team USA and is penciled in for July 15-16. As of right now, that’s the only visit that’s scheduled. Drew Beam continues to work this one.
Another name to keep an eye on is former Coastal Carolina southpaw Liam Doyle. Tennessee’s transfer portal class is nearly full, but we project the Vols could have spots for two more. A lot of that could depend on the upcoming MLB Draft as well and if any other current players decides to enter the transfer portal. The window closes on July 13. However, this is an important note: Players must have entered the portal by July 1 to transfer within the conference.
Some have asked about Chase Burns and his next landing spot and wondering if there was any way he might come back to Tennessee. No one is suggesting to us that he might return, but the longer there’s silence on his future, the more those rumors will grow.
Speaking of the draft, here are current commits who could be drafted and is worth keeping an eye on. The ranking in parenthesis is from the latest Baseball America MLB Draft Prospects list. As always, rankings aren’t everything.
LHP Matthew Dallas (No. 138)
RHP Derek Schaefer (No. 241)
SS Ariel Antigua (No. 270)
3B Carson Rucker (No. 300)
SS Dean Curley (No. 322)
LHP/OF Brayden Sharp (No. 337)
SS Blake Grimmer (No. 383)
INF Bradke Lohry
Tennessee’s Chase Dollander will be drafted in the first round on Sunday night. SS Maui Ahuna, OF/C Jared Dickey, RHP Seth Halvorsen and RHP Andrew Lindsey are also likely to be drafted. Keep an eye on RHP Aaron Combs and 3B Zane Denton, who will have a decision to make about coming back or not. Same for Ryan Galanie who was mentioned above.
A quick summer ball note. Kyle Booker is being added to the Kingsport Axmen roster of the Appalachian League. He is replacing Kavares Tears, who tweaked his hamstring last week (opposite hamstring he tweaked during the season). He worked to get it better because he wanted to gets reps this summer, but instead shut it down to get healthy for fall.
Hoops
Tennessee’s staff is back on the road this week as the first evaluation window of July is taking place this weekend, starting on Thursday.
Rick Barnes was like many head coaches in the nation, hitting the venerable NIKE Peach Jam in North Augusta, S.C. on Thursday along with associate head coach Justin Gainey.
Shooting guard Austin Swartz, out of the Charlotte, who made an official visit to Knoxville last month, is definitely someone who will have the staff’s full attention in North Augusta. Swartz, the No. 28 prospect in the nation according to On3 sits at the top of the Vols 2024 recruiting board at the moment.
Thus far he’s only made official visits to Tennessee and Clemson. He’s got plenty of other options out there, so we wouldn’t say those are the only two finalists right now, but the Vols have put themselves in solid position here and are continuing to recruit Swartz aggressively.
Tennessee will also be closely tracking Ahmad Nowell at the Peach Jam this weekend. While it feels like the Vols have some momentum with Swartz, it doesn’t necessarily feel that way with Nowell. Tennessee still seems like they’re in it, for certain, but a few months ago they felt like the team to beat. That no longer seems to be the case.
Perhaps because of where they might feel they stand with Nowell, a newer name in 2024 to know is Bishop Boswell, the four-star point guard out of Myers Park High School in Charlotte, N.C. The 6-foot-4, 195-pound Boswell is the No. 50 overall player in the On3 rankings and is the No. 7 point guard in the class. Boswell is at the Peach Jam in front of the Vols’ staff this week playing with the Chris Paul sponsored NIKE travel team.
A huge name in 2025 for Tennessee is four-star point guard Aaron Rowe at Link Academy. He’s the No. 19 overall player in the On3 Industry Ranking and is the No. 3 point guard in the class. He was the first offer extended by the Vols in the 2025 class and will be a huge priority as his recruitment continues.
Rowe has been one of the top playmakers at the Peach Jam this week (averaging 5.0 apg). Rowe plays his summer ball with MOKAN Elite, the same program that Kennedy Chandler played with and that current Tennessee assistant Rod Clarke worked with early in his career.
On campus, sophomore power forward Tobe Awaka is back from his play overseas with Team USA in the FIBA U-19 World Cup, where he averaged 11.6 points and 10.6 rebounds in 20.7 minutes per game over seven games. He led all players in the tournament in rebounds per game (10.6) and offensive rebounds (5.0), despite somewhat limited minutes, which obviously turned some heads.
Freshman Cameron Carr arrived on campus recently, checking in at 6-foot-5 and 173 pounds and given the No. 43 that his dad, Chris Carr, wore in the NBA. The craziest number we got on Carr is his 7-foot-1 wingspan. “He’s pretty freakish” is what we were told. He’s been impressive on the floor despite getting a late start, but it’s still hard to imagine he’ll get a ton of minutes given the depth on the current roster. But it’s safe to say Carr has a very high ceiling down the road.
Tennessee coaches continue to be very excited about this roster top to bottom, both in terms of depth and skill. Obviously it’s just summer workouts, but redshirt freshman wing DJ Jefferson has impressed, freshman forward JP Estrella has shown early signs of a very bright future, Josiah-Jordan James is fully healthy and shooting it well, Freddie Dilione V is shooting it well, Dalton Knecht’s great start has continued, the list goes on. Again, it’s just July. But this coaching staff has been really happy with how the pieces have fit together on this roster so far.
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