Petty
Tennessee’s coaches spent much of the spring evaluation period looking for quarterbacks.
Near and far. Acclaimed or not. Hundreds of quarterbacks were on UT’s prospect list.
Bryce Petty of Midlothian (Texas) High School was one of those. And once the 6-foot-3, 211-pound Petty emerged, he never went away.
The Vols thought so highly of Petty - and his performance last weekend at UT’s football camp - that coaches decided to offer him a scholarship on Tuesday evening. Little more than 12 hours later, Petty committed to the Vols, capitalizing on his biggest offer to date.
“It’s kind of funny how everything changes in just a couple of hours,” Petty said. “I was sitting on Portland State and New Mexico as my only offers.”
If Petty proves to be a big-time college quarterback, he and UT’s coaches will have been proven prophetic. Petty attended football camps at Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Nebraska, yet didn’t receive a scholarship offer from those schools.
Flashy? That’s not Petty.
“I’m not a real big-armed guy,” Petty said of his passing ability. “I make the throws I need to and put it out in people’s hands so they can do what they need to do with it. I’m just a guy that gets it to where it needs to be.”
On the ground, Petty has posted a time of 4.64 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
“I’m fast enough to where if I need to get out of a situation, I can,” he said. “But I’m not going to run 60 yards downfield and run away from people.
“It’s not blazing (speed), but it’s not too slow. I can get to where I need to be.”
Petty had to wonder if he was good enough to receive a UT scholarship last weekend. UT coaches told him he had a good chance – if he performed well during the camp. Then, nerves set in.
“I started out slow,” Petty said. “I was trying to impress people and got out of my rhythm. Then towards the end, I think I did pretty good. I just calmed down.”
First-year UT offensive coordinator Dave Clawson has said that character is the first thing he looks for in a quarterback. That certainly seemed to be the case based on how he recruited Petty, who said his high school coach was asked “six or seven” times about his moral fiber.
Once Petty received the big school offer he had been waiting for, everything seemed to fall into place. First, there was his family lineage.
Despite living in Texas, Petty knows SEC football. He grew up in Arkansas and his cousin played football for LSU.
Then, there was the East Tennessee outdoors.
“That’s one of the things I loved about it, was the location,” said Petty, an avid golfer and fisherman. “Tennessee has all those hills and trees. I love the outdoors.”
UT has 10 commitments for the 2009 signing class. Petty is UT’s first quarterback commitment, but the Vols could decide to take another to compete with Petty, who is expected to redshirt during the 2009 season.
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Comments » 205
Michael1204 writes:
Welcome to the team! :)
GotPearl writes:
New Mexico and Portland State. Let Bruce do the recruiting
b_neas writes:
1st comment......woohoo.....anyway like the fact that he is at least a big athletic mobile QB, maybe we can teach him to throw (if he cant already) later.....lol
b_neas writes:
nevermind missed the 1st comment by 2, dang!
jelyhupla writes:
You left off Oklahoma, Nebraska, Texas AM, and Arkansas GotPearl
byobbio writes:
A QB is a QB, I guess. But Portland State? Can't we a least go up against Portland, just plain Portland? And is Portland a state? Get over it Portland. You're not a state. You never will be a state. And you are not going up against the VOLS and beating us in the recruiting game!
BSweet writes:
Both rivals and scout have him at three stars. Clawson must have seen something he liked. Hopefully he's a diamond in the rough.
FWBVol writes:
If others are going to police football comments on basketball stories, I think it's only fair that we leave the basketball comments off a football story.
Evidently Phillip Fulmer, offensive coordinator Dave Clawson and the coaches saw something in this kid or they wouldn't have offered him a scholarship. I also doubt Petty will be only QB offered by the staff this year.
Welcome aboard Bryce.
RunRunPassPunt writes:
great news! they just keep coming. its nice coming to the site and not having to read all the childish drivel of Capt. Dipsh*t and his merry band of fritter aliases.
slsmithsr#269458 writes:
From ESPN:
Evaluation
Petty is a prospect that may begin to garner more interest as his senior campaign gets under way. He possesses very good size and a strong arm and would be considered a true pocket passer at this point. Works out of the spread and is in the shotgun all the time which does not give us the opportunity to really see his footwork and ability to plant and deliver the ball on time. He shows very good balance and set up off the one-step drop, feet are quick and he generally has a very good idea of where he wants to go with the ball. Ball comes out quickly, he shows very zip and the ability to fit the ball into some tight spots in the short and intermediate passing game. He does not wow you with his arm strength, but he can make throws vertically and outside of the numbers, he just doesn't get many opportunities to do so. This is a Texas Tech-like scheme, dink and dunk for the most part. Throws very well on the move to both sides and is an accurate, technically sound passer with his feet underneath him on a consistent basis. Petty's delivery can be a bit mechanical and over-the-top and gives the appearance that he's pushing the ball a bit. Would like to see him work from under center some in the dropback passing game. Doesn't show much power downfield or have many chances, is more of a timing and rhythm thrower to a particular spot. Overall, Petty is a solid performer that has something about him that you like. He is tough and performs with a high production level. Good prospect.
Mr_Bandman writes:
okay....I'm all for giving these guys a chance.....BUT....over the past couple of days we've been "stealing" recruits away from places like Coastal Carolina, Gardner-Webb, and Portland State, none of whom I was previously aware actually had more than intramural flag football on their respective campuses....looks a like the new guys might be bringing in a little too much of their IAA experience....I'm sure these kids would play great against East Carolina and James Madison, but how are they going to do against the 4- and 5-star talent at Florida, UGa, LSU, Bama, etc., etc., etc.....????? I guess we'll have to wait & see...
tigervol9802 writes:
So we're giving scholarships to kids being recruited by 1-AA schools and still have no D-linemen signed????
Oy.
BigVolinCarolina writes:
I'm with you GotPearl.
Although ratings and rankings can--and often do--"miss", it's hard to see why we'd offer a scholarship at a skill position to someone who has offers from Portland State and New Mexico.
I'm not bashing the kid at all--just hope that the coaches see something present that everyone else isn't seeing.
volchiq writes:
Thanks for the info smith. Maybe you should work for the KNS.
Why don't we all reserve judgement until he has at least started his senior year? If he is 6'-3" now hopefully he will add an inch or two by the time he gets here. He sounds like a good pick-up to replace our Red Sox defector.
Vol13 writes:
Great pickup! Not only did we beat out PSU and UNM. But this guy won 1st place in the Drew Maddux Look-A-Like Contest three years in a row!!!!!
RJ_Vol writes:
I think who we are recruiting may be the best clue/hint at what offense Coach Clawson plans to run in the future. Remember, Petty is only a junior. Senior years seem to have a big impact on how high school athletes are ranked in the recruiting services. Someone may beat me to the punch on this...He's a 3* QB on Rivals and was considering Arkansas, Baylor, Oklahoma, Nebraska, New Mexico, TCU, Texas A&M, and yes, Portland St. Now, in all fairness it's tough to tell which of those schools were actively recruiting him. He threw for over 2,000 yards as a junior - not too shabby in the TX high school football leagues.
LanceR24 writes:
one thing to remember as well is this kid has only been throwing since his sophmore year before he moved to texas he ran a wing t. imho if the kid is a three star player with basically one year of being a true qb this kid might be a sleeper or higher rated at the end of senior year.
RJ_Vol writes:
OK. I went to the Rivals site and watched some of this kid's highlights. If you go to the site, be sure to see the caliber of athlete who is at DB and on the D-line...meaning who he is playing against. Also, look carefully at the style of offense he is playing! Also, look at the throws he is making.
tnvolfan30 writes:
If you guys are complaining about recruits just because they were recruited by a smaller school, why don't you apply to the A.D. and maybe you can bring your NCAA '08 expertise. Come on, just because a big school didn't look at them doesn't mean they can't play in a big conference like the SEC. Just look what Appy ST. did to Michigan....
turner_c writes:
He was one of the top QB at the June 6th Elite 11 camp in Fort Worth. Since his camp showing, Nebraska, Oklahoma, TX A&M, & Arky have been at his school. He was at OK camp just before ours and their Rivals site said he impressed the staff and was a definite D1 QB prospect. UT actually visited him in April and invited him to camp and he impressed enough to get an offer. Fans complain when the staff takes too long to evaluate a recruit before offering but still complain when we evaluate, offer and get a commit before the other big hitters. Shofield and Phillips stock will rise and we are going to have to fight to hang onto them too. Don't expect Arky, OK, Nebraska or TX A&M to back off recruiting Petty either. Oh, he also just turned 17. JMO, but I think we got another good one.
volchiq writes:
Okay, I just went to look on ESPN and they don't say have any mention of Portland State. It is pretty bad when it is obvious that the KNS is trying to make the football program look bad. Any other time (for another school or even for basketball) they would mention the other schools that are after a recruit. In this case, Scout.com lists Arkansas, LSU, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech.
Okay, I guess they did leave out TN, so what could they know.
99gator writes:
good for tenn, but they don't have to have their entire class committed by july
RockyTopRK writes:
This young man is most likely NOT the answer to Tennessee's future QB needs. However, I wonder if any of you bloggers have heard this. In Rivals list of the top 18 recruits for the class of 2009, there are 8 or 9 prospects that have not yet made a college choice. Of those top 18, "every single one of the uncommitted prospects" is showing Tennessee on their list of schools they are considering. It could be a banner year for Vols recruiting.
RJ_Vol writes:
chas_turner (3:58). Great post! For those who seem so worried...Those schools chas listed sure don't look like Div 1-AA schools in the running for Petty's services. Again, I find it interesting who is being recruited. According to Smith(3:24) post, he is in a Texas Tech type scheme. Obviously we don't run that offense here. Should that tell us something about where we may be heading offensively?
vol_in_lsu_land writes:
Good gravy. Relax people, he's getting a lot of looks
http://oklahoma.scout.com/2/756686.html
"The three-star quarterback holds an offer from Portland State and is also receiving strong interest from schools like Nebraska, LSU, Stanford, Louisville, Baylor, and Texas Tech."
Not a bad list, and this from an Oklahoma Sooners site where he was being looked at by them.
http://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73&...
"ANALYSIS: Now to the meat of this article. These three have put a hold on the recruitment of quarterbacks in the rest of the state. With in-state schools such as Texas A&M, Baylor, Texas Tech, Rice, and Houston all hoping to land one of the big three and out-of-state schools such as Arizona, Missouri, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Kansas State, and so on also in the chase. Basically you have all of the schools recruiting Texas heavily trying to land one of the big three uncommitted and putting on hold the chase for other quarterback prospects. Thus guys like Drew Allen (Alamo Heights) and Bryce Petty (Midlothian) have a shocking low number of offers.
If and when one of the big three drop look for Allen and Petty to pick up considerable action from those schools who missed out on that player who committed. If Cody Green or Jacob Karam pick an in-state school then it could start a serious run on quarterbacks, however a Mossakowski commit would not since he is not really leaning one way or another and is looking a lot to out of state teams."
Basically, looks like Texas is a hotbed for QBs this year in particular. While all the Texas in-state schools are fighting for the top three prospects, who are all uncommited, Tennessee slipped under the radar and got one that was being a little overlooked. Not a bad deal if you ask me.
hcjournals#206623 writes:
Tap on the brakes...
Before we reduce ourselves to a 1AA world, let's see if these guys are on the cutting edge. They just might be. If they are, we stole them. If they aren't , I'll be the first to bow to the skeptics.
caskew#218608 writes:
Exactly 99gator, does anyone ever remember us having 10 commits by mid-June? I think the coaching staff is trying to get a head start on recruiting this season and trying to find the big-time guys BEFORE they actually become big-time guys to other schools. The first big school to offer usually means a lot to these kids. Now we just have to fight other schools to keep them once they realized they might have missed out on one!
VOLS85 writes:
99,
Phil phreaked out when he heard about what pearl was doing and didn't want him to steal his thunder...if he doesn't pan out, we can pound 70 lbs. of fritters into that 210 pound frame and convert him to DT...
posivol writes:
this fellow was in camp---nuff said!
welcome to tennessee vol football---hope you make a name to be remembered for years to come.
bowerst#242774 writes:
Good that he runs a dink and dunk offense in high school. Unless Clawson changes things, that's what he will run in college -- if he makes it up the depth chart.
Looks like a good kid, so why not give him a shot? If he doesn't pan out, well, everyone needs 3 QBs.
golfballs03 writes:
I'm glad we got one! Nothing against Bryce, but I dont think we had much in the way of QB prospects for '09 so it's good we got one snatched up
Vol13 writes:
You all can spin and re-spin til your hearts are content. I can name you a laundry list of similar commits and signees from recent years who you all raved about (or would have if the internet would have been in place) that couldn't crack the 3 deep at UT.
Facts? We've got 8-9 scholarships left and of the players we've offered I see 2 maybe 3 that can help the Vols ATTEMPT to beat the likes of Florida, Georgia, Alabama, etc. If we don't sign 8-9 absolute studs with what we have left - then combined with the 2006 and 2008 classes - we are destined to become the Official Team of Lincoln Financial Sports starting in 2010 or 2011. If not worse. It takes talent to win in this league. Big-time talent and lots of it.
CoverOrange writes:
It appears obvious if not down right dramatic that Clawson & Co. has changed the tempo of offensive recruiting at UT. Won't know if it is for good or bad for several years, but for once Fulmer is allowing something different.
RJ_Vol writes:
DC(4:07) I'm not a member on Rivals. I must have caught a "break" earlier when I viewed Petty's film - must be a marketing thing. An additional thought, I'm just pleased UT is recruiting w/ success in Florida.
VOLS85 writes:
we might as well just pack it in now Vol13...sound good to you?
RJ_Vol writes:
I agree w/ Turbo(4:23). We wanted change on offense and it definitely looks like we are going to get it.
Phowell23 writes:
Get Nunes and we'll convert this guy to a big time Wide Receiver.
RJ_Vol writes:
I think the season will have a lot to do with who we sign down the stretch. IF(as suspected) the offense is new and exciting for the players, word will get around.
Vol13 writes:
85 - Fans like you who are willing to accept a turd with ribbon around it are what is killing this program. You guys are just happy to be able to show up and compete. I mean, what's so great about winning? The real fun is just putting a bunch kids out there and hoping that UF or UGA makes enough mistakes to allow us a chance to win. It's the Bill Battle days all over again. Maybe we can back our way to Atlanta once every 5 years or so to convince us that we "still got it."
You all are more concerned with policing message boards and slapping the hand of those not afraid to say what needs to be said than you are of fixing the problems. If it wasn't so funny, it would be sad.
invisiblekid writes:
Since signing day is 8 months away, I think I'll reserve judgement on the '09 recruiting class. Most of these kids still have their senior year to improve their star power and get the seal of approval from the pundits. You can't help but wonder about going against the Gardner Webbs and Portland States of the world though. We all better hope that Clawson and company are shrewd judges of talent.
raynochonspeed#212632 writes:
From my interpretation of the article, Clawson was impressed with him and offered.
So...my fear is that this kid would certainly have been impressive if he were being recruited for the Richmond Spiders. I'm sure Fulmer has a strong hand in this, but it sounds like we may be offering lesser talents 1) to fit Clawson's offense, and 2) because Clawson isn't accustomed to the level of SEC talent.
CoverOrange writes:
sjt, I was thinking the same thing (recruiting Richmond style that is) and it'll be years before we know.
But one thing to consider, how many NC teams had great or super QBs? How many had pedestrian to good? I would guess more the latter than the former. We don't have to have another Manning or Martin to get to the top. But we do need Lineman.
sideout77 writes:
I think many people are overlooking the obvious. Recruiting Strategy has changed. Not juet here but at all D-1 schools. With the graduation rate being tied to scholarships in the future it becomes increasingly important that we recruit solid kids to play for the university. We can ill afford to take risks on kids with academic issues or character issues. You want to recruit kids who are solid academically, who will be contributors to the program and will graduate. It means fewer risks on high talent kids who are questionale academically or have risky backgrounds. You cant afford them. Notice the higher level of attention being paid to getting past players back into school to get their degree?
The same approach is being applied at other schools too. Not all, but some. I live in Virgina and I see VA Tech and UVA taking similar approaches. The schools that dont amend their ways could find themselves facing hard times with scholarship numbers in the future.
invisiblekid writes:
DCFlorida and 99Gator, take a look at Auburn(16 verbals) GA(11 verbals) and LSU(13 verbals). The whole landscape of recruiting seems to be picking up the pace.
I agree with the assessment that it's a risky proposition from several different standpoints. On the plus side, a kid like Petty could explode his senior year and have everyone knocking on his door while we have already offered. On the negative, he could get injured or have a horrible season and the Vols are stuck in a situation where they thought they had the right kid and then have to play catch up trying to find someone else.
cjraney writes:
I'm just glad to have a QB not from the west coast. You hear alot about the intensity of Texas HS football so maybe we'll see some fire from him.
The description, no cannon of an arm but has mobility & gets it to the playmakers, seems to fit with Clawson's self-described style. It seems that Fulmer has not handcuffed his new coordinator, at least not yet, and I think most would agree that is a good thing. Welcome aboard kid [and bring DT's with you].
invisiblekid writes:
Uhhh....marc_ash, Appalachian beat Richmond in Boone NC 55-35 to advance in the playoffs last year. I was at the game but do agree that Clawson had a good offensive system.
IBleedOrange444 writes:
Welcome to UT Bryce. Good to have you aboard!
invisiblekid writes:
Nice post rellis, you stated it better than I could.
vol_in_lsu_land writes:
Fulmer's Master Plan:
1) Hire Div IAA coach as OC
2) Convince UT BOD to lower student enrollment to confomrm to Div IAA standards
3) Join the Colonial Athletic Association in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly IAA), Clason's former conference
4) Finish 10 year final span of career undefeated, surpassing Neyland in wins, and setting FCS records as winningest coach with at least 10 years as HC.
Tongue in cheek sarcasm.
People, get a clue. This is a good prospect, we might get another one later. I'm fairly certain that most touted 5* guys are a little more dramatic and let the "courtship ritual" drag on.
vol_in_lsu_land writes:
Bammer,
How many coaches in how many years? What is it, 7 in 17 since stallings? 5 since 2001 alone? And then you have to hire a prostitute...btw, its "dysfunctional"
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