2015 Recruiting Class

[WestEndVol]

Jaason Lewis - Yahoo! Sports

 

[WestEndVol]

"I just talked to coach (Zach Azzanni) last week and he asked me to come down for a visit and to check them out," Lewis said. "He direct messaged me one day after practice and then we talked. It all came out of the blue. But, we have been talking on Facebook and messaging and stuff."

Yet, it seems he will give the Vols one last chance on Jan. 30 when he plans to be on campus for an official visit. "It's just the program that they are and I just haven't been to check it out at all so I feel like I should," Lewis said. Even though Tennessee already has two backs in the class Lewis doesn't seem too worried about a young backfield becoming too crowded. "You're probably going to have competition anywhere you go so I just want to be where I'm needed," Lewis said.

Lewis said he's talked to Tennessee's running backs coach Robert Gillespie several times recently and the coach has told him he reminds him of a certain current Vol who is also a bigger running back. "We've talked a few times. He seems like a nice guy. He has just talked to me about how he uses their running backs and stuff like that. He's talked to me about Jalen Hurd. I watched him a few times," Lewis said. "He kind of resembles me. That's who a lot of people compare me to," Lewis said. "It's not a bad comparison because he's the man. He had a great year as a freshman."

"I've never been there and I feel like they were one of my top schools (before he committed) and this is a decision that you only make one time in your life so I'm going to make sure I listen to everything they have to say," Lewis explained. Besides Tennessee on Jan. 30 Lewis also has scheduled an official visit to Florida on Jan. 16. "I always liked Florida growing up and during the recruiting process and I just never got the chance to visit until now," Lewis said.

-VQ
Jaason Lewis - Yahoo! Sports

 

[WestEndVol]

Ryan Newsome - Yahoo! Sports

 

[WestEndVol]

Some introduction vids:

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

4-star QB Sheriron Jones committed today.

Sheriron Jones - Yahoo! Sports

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

Tennessee Vols trending in 247Sports Crystal Ball

 

[WestEndVol]

The battle for Love also still seems to be a bit of a toss-up between Tennessee and Stanford with his scheduled announcement on Jan. 30 now less than three weeks away. Love tweeted Saturday that he has been accepted into Stanford, and there’s no question that could play a bit of a factor in his final decision. The rigorous academic standards at Stanford sometimes add a bit of uncertainty to the recruiting process for some prospects, and Love now knows that he has the option of playing for the Cardinal. But geography still is working in Tennessee’s favor in what essentially has become a two-team race, and the Vols are expected to make a strong academic sales pitch to Love when they host him on an official visit the weekend of Jan. 23. He’s scheduled to visit Stanford this weekend.

-247

Bryce Love

 

[WestEndVol]

Tennessee still is believed to be the favorite to land Sapp, although a few other teams remain in the picture, and his trip to Knoxville this weekend could be an important one as the Vols look to add him to their class.

-247

Quart'e Sapp

 

[WestEndVol]

 

[WestEndVol]

Humble Alvin Kamara 'excited' for future with Tennessee Vols

After leaving Alabama to attend Kansas’ Hutchinson Community College last season, the highly touted running back prospect from the Atlanta area was dealt a large slice of humble pie.

“My high school weight room was bigger than Hutchinson’s,” Kamara said Tuesday afternoon. “It just makes you step back and realize and appreciate the things that you have. Coming from Alabama and going to Hutch, it was just like, ‘Whoa.’”

Now that he’s back in the Southeastern Conference — the Rolls Royce Region of college football facilities — Kamara said he’s determined to learn from the past and make his Tennessee experience a memorable one for all the right reasons.

“It’s tough, being at juco,” Kamara said. “As you guys probably know, juco is a whole different world than being at a DI school. It’s about being committed and staying humble and being able to get through that, to work hard to get to where you want to be at.

“Of course, facilities are different, coming from Alabama and then going to Hutchinson. It’s a drop in facilities, and just academic support wise. At juco, you’ve kind of got to do what you’ve got to do to get everything done. I definitely learned how to be organized. I’ll say that.”

Ability has never been Kamara’s problem, and his 2014 season at Hutchinson did nothing to disprove that notion. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound back showed why Alabama never wanted him to leave in the first place, collecting 1,253 yards and 18 touchdowns on 172 carries — an average of 7.3 yards per carry — as well as adding 224 yards and three more scores on eight catches and releasing one of the 2015 recruiting cycle’s most silly-good highlight films.

 

[WestEndVol]

"Zach Azzanni and Mike Bajakian will be in Texas to visit with Ryan Newsome on Thursday. Tennessee is a real factor for Newsome after we wondered if he would be willing to leave the state. But we've received several indications in the last week that the Vols are definitely a realistic choice. Butch Jones, as of now, is scheduled to be in Newsome's home on Sunday."

-VQ