‘That changed everything for me' – In-state 4-star recruit explains why he committed to a lesser SEC rival over the Tennessee Vols
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Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Volunteers have had a tough few weeks on the in-state recruiting trail. The Vols have missed on three in-state recruiting targets this month.
It’s been a tough few weeks for Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Vols on the (in-state) recruiting trail.
The Volunteers landed a commitment from a 2027 three-star in-state cornerback Brandon Leavell this week.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is that Tennessee whiffed on three other in-state recruit targets.
Tennessee missed on another in-state target on Tuesday
2027 four-star cornerback Miles Brown, 5-foot-11/188 pounds from Martin, TN, committed to Kentucky over Tennessee on Tuesday.
Brown is the third in-state target who’s committed elsewhere this month.
Four-star linebacker Kenneth Simon II, from Brentwood, TN, committed to Alabama last week.
On Monday, four-star safety Jarrell Chandler, 6-foot-3/210 pounds from Knoxville, TN, committed to Clemson.
Why did Miles Brown choose Kentucky over Tennessee?
The Vols had some momentum with Brown, but that changed earlier this month after the Knoxville product had a phone call with Kentucky’s staff that “changed everything”.
“It was really close and it came down to the wire,” said Brown to On3 of his decision to commit to Kentucky over Tennessee. “I just stayed neutral until one pulled away. It was a phone call about a week ago that changed everything for me. It was after the second visit that I spoke with the coaches again. That pushed Kentucky to the top.”
Brown was originally planning to announce his commitment during the summer months, but last week he moved his announcement up to May 19 (which lines up with the phone call that “changed everything”).
I don’t know what was said during that call, but it clearly made a big impact on the four-star safety.
It’s been a tough in-state stretch for Heupel and the Vols, but that’s how it goes sometimes in recruiting — you can’t land them all.
Tennessee, for what it’s worth, has landed two of the top 10 players in the state (offensive lineman Princeton Uwaifo and wide receiver Kesean Bowman). And they’re very much in the mix for 2027 five-star running back David Gabriel Georges, the top recruit in the state. So it’s not as bleak as it looks for the Vols, it’s just a tough stretch.
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