Tennessee received a pair of football commitments Wednesday, continuing its offseason recruiting momentum.
D.J. Hunter, a highly recruited defensive back from Middletown (Ohio) High School, and Antonio Foster, an offensive lineman from Valdosta (Ga.) High School both gave verbal commitments to Tennessee. The Vols now have 13 commitments for the 2009 class.
Hunter chose UT over Ohio State, Michigan and several other schools.
Rivals.com ranks the 6-foot, 196-pound Hunter as a four-star prospect and the No. 14 cornerback prospect in the nation, while Scout.com gave Hunter three stars and lists him as its No. 36 cornerback.
Hunter’s cousin, Darrell Hunter, is a defensive back with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, after signing with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent out of Miami (Ohio) University.
“I really didn’t want to come home it was so nice there,” Hunter told the Middletown Journal about his unofficial visit to Knoxville. “The players and coaches were cool down there. I just liked everything about it. It felt like somewhere I could stay.”
Foster, a 6-foot-4, 285-pound guard from Valdosta (Ga.) High School, is ranked the No. 32 offensive guard prospect in the nation by Rivals. He was recruited by South Carolina, Georgia Tech and South Florida, among others.
Foster said his biggest strength is his versatility, and he said he is comfortable playing either side of the line.
“I think I’m a good pass protector. If you want a run blocker, I can run block,” Foster said in a telephone interview Wednesday evening. “I’m good on both. I’ve been prepared for that.”
Foster and Hunter are the latest additions to a UT recruiting class that keeps growing during the summer months.
In June, UT received verbal commitments from seven prospects, including top 10 quarterback prospect Josh Nunes.
That momentum hasn’t been lost on those outside the program, either. Just this week, ESPN.com moved the Vols to No. 10 in its latest recruiting rankings.
Foster, for one, was glad he could commit early.
“It was a load off my back,” Foster said of his commitment, adding that he can focus on winning a state title this fall with Valdosta, one of the nation’s premier high school programs. “I’m glad I can be a part of (UT’s recruiting class).”
UT on Brown’s List: Harding Academy wide receiver Marlon Brown told the Memphis Commercial Appeal on Wednesday that Tennessee is on his list of 10 finalists, along with USC, UCLA, Stanford, Ohio State, Notre Dame, LSU, Georgia, Florida and Oklahoma.
Brown said his list was “in no particular order” and that he plans to trim the list to five or six schools by early August.
Brown, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound receiver caught 41 passes for 861 yards and six touchdowns, in addition to 629 yards and 10 touchdowns rushing. Rivals.com ranks Brown the nation’s No. 2 receiver prospect and the No. 17 overall prospect in the country for 2009.
Drew Edwards covers University of Tennessee football. He may be reached at 865-342-6274.
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Comments » 87
volnbig11land writes:
Great news, always want to see a DB on the list and a lot of OL can become DE. It is especially good to see us take one from up here in buckeye land. I'm sure everyone around here will say he isn't good enough to play for "the" osu... Keep it up Vols!
b_neas writes:
Wow really rolling in recruiting. We usually do not get commits til late. Hopefully this is setting a trend.
murrayvol writes:
If it's on GVX, it must be true.
auttat writes:
Right on time KNS
CoverOrange writes:
I thought we were at 11 commits before. 11 + 2 = 13? Did we lose one or did my HP reverse polish notation calculator lose something in translation?
MrBamSeydu writes:
NIIIIIIIIICE!!!
Coyoteuglyvol writes:
Where is Hooker? I thought he handled recruiting. Half a day behind on both these commitments! I don't even know why I look at this site? This was on Volquest 6 hours ago and even InsideTennessee had it 2 hours ago.
turner_c writes:
15 commits if you include R Williams, Hall & Sykes.
osunut2#223683 writes:
What's the story on Hunter? Last I heard, he had very little interest in playing for Tennessee.
Volchaz writes:
KNS must be trying to catch Tebow for another interview, this is old news..
BleedOrange writes:
Hope he qualifies
http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/...
IBleedOrange444 writes:
Kosmo-
That's hilarious. Can you put in some calls to Chavis?
Greyback_Vol writes:
Turbo,
After reviewing the tape, it is confirmed: 11 + 2 is indeed 13.
Go Vols! There must be a slew of d-line recruits out there. Or we can hope, right?
knoxnewsuser writes:
"UT Football, the appetizer for UT Basketball!"
invisiblekid writes:
Looks to be another couple of solid recruits. Real interesting to see Hunter leave Big 10 country.
volnbig11land writes:
It is GREAT to see him leave big11land invisiblekid!
thesavageorange writes:
Foster is the second commit that hasn't stepped foot in K'Ville.I don't know how their pulling that feat, but it's impressive.
bigtimevol writes:
OUTSTANDING...we are off to the races.
Volchaz writes:
He had to leave big 10 country, he ran too fast, he just didn't fit in....lol.....
volnbig11land writes:
hahaha nice Volchaz!
invisiblekid writes:
Ummm chas.....11+2+3=16 by my math. Just kiddin' around man.
Allen, Giles, Nunes, Oliver, Petty, Revis, Phillips, Schofield, Stokes, Williams, and Thigpen were all on the commit list prior to today which makes 11.
Add in Hunter and Foster today and that makes 13 total and confirmed on Rivals.
And finally, add Williams, Sykes, and Halls to the equation and that makes 16.
lspuhler writes:
@Coyoteuglyvol - Hooker is on vacation this week.
Lauren Spuhler
knoxnews.com
invisiblekid writes:
Good to see you back Savage, hope the 4th went OK for you.
Any word on Hicks, glanced and saw where he narrowed it down to two, too cheap to pay for all the services though. Also, have you heard any scuttlebutt about Barry Dabney from Brentwood? Sounds a like he could be a good player if he refines his technique.
IBleedOrange444 writes:
Good job coaches.
Welcome to the family guys!
CheckerboardPhilosopher writes:
Thought you guys might be interested in the Big Orange Roundtable. Every week, all of the big names in the UT blogosphere will answer five Vols-related questions. Feel free to comment.
http://3rdsaturdayinblogtober.wordpre...
bobo_the_vol writes:
5.9 Rivals.com rating (All-American talent)
TNfaninMS writes:
This Hunter kid did not even have us listed as a possibility on rivals. This is interesting. GO VOLS!
dfreeman writes:
Kosmo - be careful the general has watermelon!! LOL
uahvol75 writes:
who are Sykes Hall and Williams yall r talkin about?
ohiofootballfan writes:
More on Hunter:
http://www.middletownjournal.com/s/co...
thesavageorange writes:
invisiblekid , it went well thanks.Hope yours did too.
From what I hear Hicks has us 1 Oregon 2.He wants to go to the NFL and we have 2 things he needs.
1.Immediate playing time necessary for the big JR.
2.The history of producing NFL DT's.We had 11 D-lineman in the NFL last yr and John Henderson is his favorite player.He is aware of these facts.
I think he ends up a Vol.
Dabney's recruitment has been slow.I think they want to see him be more dominant against HS competition.Nothing will move for him,from a UT standpoit, untill sometime during the season.
nicksjuzunk#646117 writes:
Great news. Now it's time to complain about how we are wasting our time and scholarships without DT's.
DadwasaVol writes:
thesavageorange - yes, how do we pull in guys who haven't even seen Knoxville? Recruiting prowess!
LanceR24 writes:
General_Watermelon
rivals has foster as a 3* guard Rivals.com Rating: 5.6 (About)
Position Ranking: 32
and they have hunter as a 4* corner Rivals.com Rating: 5.9 (About)
Position Ranking: 14
thesavageorange writes:
tngeoff ,That's awesome.Man I can't wait for football season.
General_Watermelon ,I agree w/ tngeoff ,Dang well put at 6:30.It creates momentum and a buzz about the program.
LanceR24 writes:
your welcome general
cobbwebb writes:
i just saw the oregon ducks locker room , obviously by nike no doubt,world class with hidef tvs at every turn, nice lil waterfalls, whirlpools (with hidef tvs). my question is this,isnt this kinda like when kentucky had its wildcat lodge , and the ncaa didnt like it very much , and shut it down? check it out on youtube, type in dennis dixon and oregon some one else turned me onto it.makes me wonder how oregon is not cleaning everyones clock in recruiting
thesavageorange writes:
I actually think he meant Rufus Williams the DE from Titusville, FL.
General that was funny on Gerald though.
volunteer_cowboy writes:
Rae Sykes:http: //tennessee.scout.com/a.z?s=7&p=8&c=1&nid=2387513
Cory Hall: http://tennessee.scout.com/a.z?s=7&am...
volunteer_cowboy writes:
Rae Sykes: http://tennessee.scout.com/a.z?s=7&am...
invisiblekid writes:
Savage, thanks for the info and the 4th went fine from what I can remember. Didn't lose any digits setting off fireworks so all is good.
Sounds good on the Hicks front, hope he can live up to his hype as a Vol.
volunteer_cowboy writes:
what about melencon
volunteer_cowboy writes:
and also donald langley
thesavageorange writes:
bluetick0710 ,Your right about their facilities.However it's still Oregon, and unless you kayak, hunt ,or fish there isn't alot to do in Eugene.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=J1NyaTVUhFQ
volunteer_cowboy ,Melencon is a starter at La Tech.
Langley is in the 2 deep at UT.
tigervol9802 writes:
Fire ant! Fire ant! Fire ant!
In all seriousness, this is good news, but what D-tackles do we have on the radar right now? I'm afraid we're gonna be out of scholarships by the time one decides to come here.
invisiblekid writes:
BTW GeneralH2OMelon, you were almost right on the Williams question. It is actually Rufus Williams, who is the great great grandson of Gerald Williams, the one time Vol recruit who spent 32 years trying to get onto campus and play for the Vols. He finally became, after much trial and tribulation, the first walk-on player to actually roll-on in a 4 wheel scooter.
eb502us#225637 writes:
Plenty of DB's and OL, now can someone please tell Fulmer what a DL looks like.
invisiblekid writes:
vol_cowboy, Melancon is at a directional school in LA and Langley will hopefully step up and be a solid player for the Vols this year.
volunteer_cowboy writes:
Since arriving at Northwest, the 6-foot-5 Hall has bulked up to 275 pounds, while maintaining a 4.65 time in the 40-yard dash. He has had contact with coaches from Florida, LSU, Georgia, Ole Miss and Mississippi State but said if he were able to sign this year, he would still honor his commitment to UT.
“A lot of people are going to know Cory’s name once he gets to Tennessee,” said Frazier, who has had 20 Division I signees and two other players go straight to the NFL in the last four years. “He’s got a nonstop motor and with his ability to rush off the edge, Tennessee fans and opponents will know when he’s on the field. This is a kid with a possible NFL future if he continues to work.”
After setting program records in the weight room — he bench pressed 225 pounds 24 times and from a standing position pressed 135 pounds 60 times — Hall earned the team’s “Sledgehammer” award for the hardest hit twice last season. With his team trailing late against East Mississippi CC, Hall stripped the quarterback on a sack and recovered the fumble to set up the winning touchdown.
“I was to blame for being here instead of Tennessee,” said Hall, who has a 2.8 grade point average now and intends to enroll at UT next January. “I’ve seen the effect of not doing your work first-hand, but I wasn’t going to dwell on it and let it keep me from reaching my goal. In fact, I’ve decided to major in education administration so I can work as a guidance counselor and make sure the same thing that happened to me doesn’t happen to somebody else.
“This could have affected my future in a negative way, but instead of a wall, I’m making it a stepping stone to get where I want to be.”
volunteer_cowboy writes:
6'5 275lbs and runs a 4.6 40 (FREAK)
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