Wu's very own recruiting thread.

Torrance Gibson*had named*Auburn*andTennessee*as co-leaders before visiting Auburn for Big Cat weekend earlier this month. After that visit, he said the Tigers had the edge. Well now Gibson has spent five days in Knoxville and he said the Volunteers made a big impression.

“It’s getting tougher because I don’t want to pick the wrong school. Tennessee is in the lead right now, no doubt about it. I spent a couple days up here, I feel comfortable with all the coaches, the campus, I know my way around town now,” Gibson said.

“It has more than a little bit (of a lead).”

The five-star quarterback said spending several days in Knoxville really gave him a true picture of what it would be like to go to Tennessee.

“It helped me get a feel for the team, the coaches, get comfortable with the coaches, the team, everyone. I’m learning the campus now. I know the whole campus now. It was a great experience,” he said.

“I saw everything. I saw the campus again, I saw all the coaches, the players, the facility, just everything. It’s getting better and better every time I go there.”

He said the comfort level with the coaches continues to grow.

“We really didn’t talk about football that much, we just hung out,” he said.

“The connection is great. I feel comfortable with them, they feel comfortable with me. We’re just moving forward.”

Gibson was sure to add that he ate lots of good barbecue in Knoxville this week. He isn’t sure of what’s next for him when it comes to visits, but he’s hoping to make it back to Knoxville this month.
 
Quentez Johnson*committed to*Miami*(Fla.) in April and opened up his recruitment in May.

While the Hurricanes are still among the Scout three-star defensive tackle’s top 8 schools, it’s a Southeastern Conference school that’s thrust to top of his favorites.

Citing “the coaches” at*Tennessee, Johnson revealed to InsideTennessee on Thursday that the Volunteers are on “top” of his list.

“I like the coaches and the atmosphere was good,” the Cedar Grove (Ga.) High School standout told IT as he left Knoxville. “Everything is cool.”

Defensive line coach Steve Stripling is leading the charge in recruiting the 6-foot-3, 330-pounder.

“He’s honest and real cool,” Johnson said of Stripling.

Tennessee is in the thick of the recruitment with other highly ranked defensive tackles like*D.J. Jones,*Kahlil McKenzie*and*Shy Tuttle. Johnson as well as the rest of this group have all logged unofficial time at Tennessee either this spring, summer or both. It won’t be the last visit for any of the three either.

“I’ll be back real soon,” Johnson said.
 
When asked about how many scholarship offers he has,*Robert Washington*spits out a rough estimate.

“I think I have 30. I haven’t counted.”

Welcome to the world of the nation’s No. 10 running back in the 2016 signing class.

Place*Tennessee*in that still-growing list of over two dozen suitors for the playmaker at SouthLake Christian Academy in Huntersville, N.C.

Washington is giving the Orange & White every opportunity to show him that a career in Knoxville is his best option, making his second unofficial visit this spring on Thursday.

“It was just more of a good time, just sitting down with the coaches,” Washington told InsideTennessee. “It was a fun time with them, talking with them. I’m getting a feel for those guys as being people, not just coaches and just how comfortable I can be being around them as a staff. It was a fun visit to me.”

The message passed from Tennessee coaches to the Scout four-star prospect roots at his reaching his potential carrying the football if he signs a National Letter of Intent to be a Vol.

“How they use their running backs first and foremost,” Washington said in description of his interest in the Big Orange. “They support the versatility of their running backs because the NFL scouts project more with running backs who can pass block. So, they do that very well. They have a great coach that leads them in Butch Jones. Coach Jones does a great job with recruiting, and he makes every recruit feel special. They just make you feel comfortable, and it’s a great family atmosphere around there.”

The No. 87 player in the Scout 300 for the 2016 signing class says Vols running backs coach Robert Gillespie and tight ends coach Mark Elder are his lead recruiters to Tennessee. However, Jones’ contributions as the head man provides Washington with comfort knowing he’s a prime target.

“They all do a great job, even head coach Butch Jones, he does a great job of recruiting me,” Washington said. “I have a great relationship with all of them. They say I’m the No. 1 running back on their board. It’s just a good time spending time with them.”

The relationship between Gillespie and Washington is key as they would work together closely on a daily basis on Rocky Top.

“He’s a great guy, and he’s a great coach,” the runner said of the second-year Tennessee assistant. “I have a really great relationship with him. It’s just going to get better and better as time rolls on. He’s a guy I can see myself being coached by.”

In Washington’s freshman and sophomore seasons combined, he’s carried the football 308 times for 3,520 yards and 39 touchdowns.

Washington was in Knoxville fresh off a trip to check out*Clemson*on Monday. Plans are to visit*North Carolina*on this upcoming Tuesday.

Look for the four-star to release a top 15 soon. The interest shown in Washington thus far and his paying his own way to get to campus twice already figure to have the Vols on that list of favorites.

After his senior season in Fall 2015 is complete, he plans to enroll at the university of his choice in January 2016.
 
Jalen Julius*has been on a big road trip with several Central*Florida*standouts. They’ve visited*Louisville,*Ohio State,*Cincinnati,Kentucky,*Tennessee, and*South Carolina*so far. Julius is sticking with the Gators for now, but the Louisville visit really turned his head.

“I’m still with Florida, but I like Louisville also,” he said.

“Just the school itself, the players, the coaches, I feel like I’m getting a connection with them. I love the facilities.”

Tennessee also really caught the eye of the 5-foot-11, 175-pound athlete and once again, he wasn’t expecting it.

“I’m surprised also because I didn’t expect Tennessee to be that good of a visit, but it was a great visit. The stadium, I was kind of shocked because I didn’t know it was that big. I fell I love with the stadium,” he said.

Julius sees some great opportunity for himself in the Volunteers program.

“I had a long talk with (head) coach Butch Jones about school and life and how they want me there,” he said.

“He said I’m diverse, I can play on both sides of the ball, but he wants me at receiver. He thinks I could do big things for them.”

Julius also liked Ohio State, but said it’s Louisville that tops the list of what he’s seen on this trip.

“To me, Louisville (was the most impressive). They have a lot of Florida boys there,” he said.

So how solid is he to Florida?

“Right now, it’s about fifty-fifty,” he said.

“Florida is still number one.”

Seeing the Gators do well this fall is going to be key for Julius.

“It’s very important because I want to be on a national stage, having a chance to go to the BCS championship,” he said.

Julius and his group will visit*ClemsonSaturday before heading home.
 
The Volunteers hosted top target, five-star quarterback*Torrance Gibson, for a five-day visit. Gibson’s 2016 teammate,*Dredrick Snelson, has been joining him on his trips lately. Snelson already has offers fromMiami,*Clemson,*Nebraska,*Wisconsin*and more. This was his first time visitingTennessee.

“Everything, the campus, the football life and just the normal life. It was fun, it’s a fun town,” Snelson said.

The 6-foot, 190-pound receiver hasn’t officially been offered by Tennessee yet, but he was able to get to know the coaches and the program a bit better.

“The coaches are cool, they kept it real with me. They were telling me the ups and downs of the program,” he said.

“I didn’t really want to talk about football that much, we talked about it a little bit. They have a good program, good receivers, the receivers corps is really good.”

Snelson expects good things from the Volunteers this fall, especially when it comes to the receivers.

“It’s up and coming. They have a lot of talent at my position and overall. They have a bunch of stars there. I think they’re going to do well this year,” he said.

He left impressed with what’s going on in Knoxville.

“I’m interested a lot, I like them,” Snelson said.

Snelson has also visited*Auburn*and he’s been to the hometown school, Miami. He isn’t ready to name favorites, but the ‘Canes definitely have his eye early.

“I like Miami a lot. I was thinking about it. I like Miami a lot,” he said.

Snelson hopes to visit*Florida*this weekend.
 
I seriously have no idea what Butch Jones is doing, but we lead for a ton of cats right now.

Nigel Warrior, Dale Carter's son, named us his favorite
 
I wish I were more of a fan. I trust Butch... He seems to have hit on a couple guys before everyone realized. But this seems like the type of kid you get on board early to recruit like Vic did last year.
 
Gah I hope not. Not the same position though. And he can tell kamara he'll play right away.
 
The elation is crystal clear in his voice.

Jocquez Bruce*tried to describe the feeling as best he could after the Knoxville resident went public with his declaration to play for the*Tennessee*Volunteers on Tuesday.

“It feels awesome! I’m part of Dream Team ’15,” Bruce told InsideTennessee.

“I just got off the phone with (Jones),” Bruce said. “He said they offered me as a baller. He said you’re not a receiver, you’re not a running back or a corner. You’re a baller.”

The 5-foot-10, 165-pounder’s pledge gives Tennessee 13 commits for its 2015 signing class. Bruce joinsDylan Jackson,Jauan Jennings,Jack Jones,*Riley Lovingood,*Zach Stewart*andJaylond Woods*as in-state talents heading to Rocky Top.

Bruce is also the second declaration for the Big Orange this June as Scout three-star quarterback*Quinten Dormady*made his decision to be a Vol known on June 9.

After clocking a laser-timed 40-yard dash at a camp at Tennessee on Saturday, Bruce got the one scholarship offer he said he sought for several months. Since then, it was only a matter of time before he joined the commitment list.

“I couldn’t even sleep,” Bruce said of his time between Saturday and Tuesday. “My momma, she couldn’t stop crying. She’s the only family I got and she couldn’t stop crying.”

Bruce says he and his mother live roughly 7 minutes from the Tennessee campus. Being so close to The Hill excites him.

“It means a lot,” he said. “I’m putting on for my city. I’ve got to show out for my city.”

Not knowing what position a prospect projects to play on the Southeastern Conference level could put a damper on things for a few players. Not Bruce: “I’m fine with that.”

Clark Duncan is the Tennessee commit’s coach at South-Doyle. Duncan was a Vols letterman at defensive back 1977-78 and 1980.

“I just got off the phone with him,” Bruce said. “He said, ‘You didn’t have no choice. You weren’t going to go anywhere besides Tennessee.’”

Duncan thinks rather highly of his do-it-all rising senior, telling IT last fall that Bruce is the “hardest working individual that I’ve ever coached over my 32 years.”

As a local son staying home to don the orange and white, tremendous pressure will be placed on Bruce with Tennessee being a program that recruits all over the country for premium talent.

“I was born for pressure. I live to play in clutch moments. That’s what I live for,” he said.

As a junior, the Cherokee star earned a spot on the Tennessee Sports Writers Association Class 5A All-State team. Bruce ran for school records of 1,936 yards and 28 touchdowns.

South-Doyle won their first TSSAA state playoff game in 2013, beating Tennessee High 41-14 in the opening round of the 5A bracket. Bruce accounted for 224 yards of offense and five touchdowns.
 
LotteryPick said:
Sooo, Gibson gonna be a Vol?

Looks that way.
Click to expand...

Admittedly, I never thought we would land Gibson up until this point. Clearly everyone is backing off now, and although teams can get back in it, we are in a great position for him in Hubbs speak. The length some of those guys are going to convince themselves there is no way we could get him is kind of ridiculous
 
Hundreds of players flocked to Tennessee’s four-day camp predominantly on the back end of last week at $40 apiece to learn more about the game from Tennessee coaches. Weather moved much of the action inside the Neyland-Thompson Sports Center but Saturdays’ competition at Neyland Stadium allowed Knoxville product Jocquez Bruce to match up with other college prospects with offers and his performance warranted the offer and subsequent acceptance of his commitment.

The South-Doyle athlete could fit in at a number of positions on the collegiate level, which played a role in why the staff moved on him. Bruce (5-10, 165) told InsideTennessee that he fully understands he must improve before he can compete with and excel against Southeastern Conference players.

“I ain’t ready yet, but I’m going to get there because I’m a hard worker. I need to improve on my hands. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got hands, I can catch. My hands could get a little better. My route-running because I’m not used to running routes. I’ve just been running them out of the backfield. So, I can improve on my routes. I’ve got to work on my running-back drills. I’m just going to work on everything.”

Please pardon any omissions but here’s a decent look at many of the top names that made it to The Hill (not all participated in the camp) from Thursday-Monday:

Justice Alexander

Jahque Alleyne

Dorian Banks

Jocquez Bruce

Devonaire Clarington

Cecil Cherry

Joel Dublanko

DeAngelo Holt

Dylan Jackson

Ryan Johnson

Quentez Johnson

Justin Martin

Bryce Mathews

Cade Mays

Trayvon Mullen

Emmanuel Olenga

Kyle Phillips

Janarius Robinson

Jahvoni Simmons

Jason Strowbridge

Levonta Taylor

Jonathan Timmons

Nigel Warrior

Robert Washington

Dexter Williams

Joejuan Williams

Jaylond Woods

Crews have Shields-Watkins Field gameday ready for the summer’s premier recruiting event — Orange Carpet Weekend. The time on campus is expected to closely resemble last year’s Foundation Day where nearly every committed player joined the entire coaching staff and family members for a number of events on the field like corn hole and home run derby. A majority of the 13-man class for 2015 is expected on top of several key targets such as:

Emmit Gooden

Ryan Johnson

Bryce Love

Cade Mays

Cameron Ordway

Quarte Sapp

Austin Smith

Keep an eye on four-star cornerback and Pulaski resident Ordway. He has Tennessee in his top 10 but sources close to his recruitment say the Vols are clearly the team to beat.

Smith is a four-star linebacker target at Georgia-based powerhouse Buford that has spoken about this trip to Rocky Top for months. He may be joined by Buford teammates like Isaac Nauta, Quay Picou, Nick Polino and Joshua Thomas. Though he’s a current longshot, Nauta is one of Tennessee’s top 3 targets at tight end for the ’16 class.

As an extension of the One Tennessee concept that’s spread across the UTAD like wildfire with programs supporting one another, the Lady Vol basketball team’s newest addition may help Jones & Co. land Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College and former Alabama running back Alvin Kamara. Sources tell IT that Kamara dates fellow Norcross (Ga.) High School alum Diamond DeShields. Rising redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jason Croom also attended Norcross with DeShields and Kamara.

Three-star quarterback Sam Darnold reiterated to IT this week that he plans to visit Rocky Top on June 28-29. In spite of the pledge of three-star Quinten Dormady, expectations are for the Vols to continue pursuing the top tier of uncommitted signal callers like Darnold and five-star Torrance Gibson. As noted in field reporter Amy Campbell’s story last week, Tennessee put some distance between itself and Auburn in the race to land Gibson, who is much more of a dual-threat type than Dormady and ran for over 1,000 yards in an FHSAA Class 5A state championship run.
 
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