Rogan
Tennessee will have more than one hole to fill in the secondary.
Another junior defensive back has made himself eligible for the NFL draft.
Eric Berry was long assumed to be heading to the next level and confirmed it after the Chick-fil-A Bowl, but the decision by Dennis Rogan qualifies as a mild surprise since there hasn’t been nearly as much buzz about his potential.
Either way, the former Fulton High School standout was on a list released by the NFL of the 53 players leaving school early, which opens up another spot on UT’s defense.
Aside from Berry, Rogan was perhaps the most versatile and valuable player for the Vols defensively. He played both safety and cornerback depending on the situation, finished fourth on the team in tackles, recovered three fumbles and forced another. Rogan also broke up six passes in coverage and grabbed his only interception of the season in a blowout win over Georgia.
Rogan also revealed when he was a freshman at UT he had a son.
Meanwhile, tight end Luke Stocker posted on Twitter that he would return to UT for his senior season. Stocker flirted with the idea of leaving, but his name was absent from the list of players moving on. The deadline to declare for the draft was Friday, and provided a player hadn’t signed with an agent he had 72 hours to remove his name and retain eligibility.
“(Fiancee) Daine Karst and I are bleeding orange for another year,” Stocker wrote. “It’s official. We couldn’t leave this town, team and coach (Derek Dooley) with the opportunity to return.”
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Comments » 112
nocleats writes:
Dont sign w/ an agent. just check out the situation. DONT sign w/ anyone Dennis. And most of all, dont listen to anyone who you hung w/ in high school.
DaveRamseyRocks writes:
Good Luck
MajorVol writes:
Wow, didn't see this one coming. Good luck Dennis.
dwilds22 writes:
Should have stayed...afraid this is a big mistake. He could really use another college year!
tulelakevol writes:
Have to find somebody else to fumble punt returns.
Seriously, good luck in the draft.
rclarkfork#639958 writes:
Kind of a shock. I really hate to see him leave as I thought he had a very good year and thought with him and Jackson, the defensive backfield would be solid. Wish him all the luck in the world and believe he will make an excellent pro player.
jakethevolguy writes:
Oh, well!! Good luck, Dennis, in the NFL. AND, THANK YOU VERY MUCH LUKE FOR"BLEEDING ORANGE"!!!!
UT4ever writes:
Dennis,
Please stay if you are going at the end of the draft or unsigned free agent.....you can finish school and improve your draft position...think about this very carefully, son....:)
BigOrangeScrew writes:
I hate to see him go, but with the posibility of a rookie salary cap in the NFL in 2011, I don't blame him for testing the waters.
BrassMonkey writes:
Gosh it is great that Kiffin took the extra time to convince all these guys that they "had done all they could for Tennessee." I guess it turns out he thought the same of himself too.
I wish Hamilton would go pro and quit acting like an amateur.
InertGas writes:
Hate to see you go Dennis. Good luck in the NFL.
jobrando#216494 writes:
Has anybody heard Kevin Steele will be defensive coordinator
SEAL_9821 writes:
Good luck to him! Wish we could have him back but with all the turmoil that has went on the last 2wks, I can't say I blame the kid. However, I do think he is making a mistake because I don't think he's quite ready for the big league and another year would benefit him greatly and improve his draft status. And I'm not saying this because I want him back next year. He just seems like he needs to improve his speed a little.
scvols writes:
Dennis!!! What have you been smoking??? If you compare yourself to Berry you will see you will not be drafted and will have to tryout somewhere, not a good thing.
AtticusFinch_WAW writes:
Best of luck Dennis! Luke,wise choice and thanks for adding to team leadership.
chad_t31 writes:
I was just about to ask the same thing. I just got a call saying it was heard on a live show on the Internet. CDD was on there naming his staff and Steele's name was mentioned as the DC. Anyone else heard anything.
Good luck, DR...although this was a total shock.
BigBadVol writes:
Not getting down on Dennis but wtf? Third or fourth round at best. He needs another year for sure.
Volunatic writes:
This is a big loss. Rogan has made a lot of great plays for the Big Orange.
I think he might have done better in the draft if he came back for his senior season, but I wish him well.
newtonrail writes:
I think you need another year. Although there may be grades or other issues at play here. I hope not, and if you leave Dennis, come back and get that degree ASAP. I worked with ex Tenn and Pro back receiving pension, but he still needed a real vocation later for his family. Very few make a living in NFL.
ChurchHillVol67 writes:
It's on his wikipedia page for whatever thats worth. Talking about Kevin Steele.
deadhorse writes:
Rogan needs to wait...he's no Eric Berry
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
What a stupid choice! He has just now matured into a good player, and with another year he could have been a great player. So whats he looking at, 3rd or 4th round pick if hes lucky
IslandVol writes:
Wish him the best, but I have a bad feeling that we will never hear from him again. He needs another year of work.
steamboatticket#484773 writes:
Saw this coming but did not want it to happen. Good luck to Rogan...he will be missed.
jsolowey writes:
Rogan is good not great, never showed any reason to leave early talent wise. i love him as a player, hope he does a great job, but i don't think he is ready. nfl is so much quicker, faster, stronger
ctownvol writes:
Yes. Bank on it.
gwbask writes:
agree 100%
Docrok writes:
I have not heard this where did you hear it?
bryanvolsfan writes:
I watched Dennis play at Fulton and he was an exceptional talent. I don't think Fulmer knew exactly what to do with him but made the right choice when he put him back in the secondary. Dennis is a great kid and a heck of a football player and I'm glad he played at Tennessee, I wish him the best of luck in the NFL. Thanks Dennis I really enjoyed watching you play for the Big Orange.
AtticusFinch_WAW writes:
Dennis isn't trying to compare himself to Eric. The young man is one of the best DB's in the country as well as the conference. Dennis is a very versatile player who can play corner as well as free safety. He can also be a great addition to ST's. Good luck Dennis,sure hate to see you go.
gwbask writes:
6th if he's lucky. Just my opinion
jobrando#216494 writes:
basillo.com guys are saying it...and as someone said they have logged into his wiki site
volunteer_cowboy writes:
Dooley just hired kevin steele as DC
volunteer_cowboy writes:
the hiring of kevin steele is on the sports animal NOW
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
Here is an article on the Kevin Steele hire, which if true is a great hire!
http://www.wbir.com/sports/story.aspx...
ghost_of_which_doctor (Inactive) writes:
Another good choice...
http://www.wbir.com/sports/college/st...
Docrok writes:
I was looking forward to Rogan being a bright spot in the backfield this year, and I am sure he will be an excellent DB in the NFL! However this is a very strong class for DB's so I am not sure Rogan has established himself to the rest of the world his abilities to be picked very high in the Draft and I think had he waited and added to his resume I think he would be better suited! However if he has a strong NFL combine performance then he may get a high enough draft status anyway!
volinlouisiana writes:
Good luck Dennis! Thanks for playing for our great university. Don't blame you one bit.
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
Great hire! Im more impressed with this coaching staff than the last. Now we need to make sure we keep Thompson as LB's coach and we will almost be set.
Volunatic writes:
If that's true, it's a pretty good hire, especially this late in recruiting season.
ctownvol writes:
I know everyone has a "source" but I just got a call from someone who is right 99% of the time and he said it is a done deal. Steele to UT
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
Here is another confirmation. Man, KNS is slow on getting current news.
http://tennessee.rivals.com/
silicon28 writes:
I don't think he's ready and that this is a bad choice for him... but can you blame him? The kid grew up off Broadway in N. Knox... and maybe looking at even the 3rd or 4th round of the NFL? Probably looks pretty good to him. It's his life, let him live it.
Mule_Days_King writes:
Didn't Steele coach at Bama before he went to Clemson? LB's or something like that?
Looks like another good hire by Coach Dooley.
Docrok writes:
Hey thanks for the link and I agree sounds like a good hire! However I have noticed that 3 guys currently part of Dooley's staff have a history working with DB's? As the guy from LA Tech was the DB's coach and recruiting coordinator. Looks like Mr. Dooley really puts alot of emphasis on recruiting too!
stayingorange writes:
Off topic, but you've got to read this article with quotes from a UT recruit about his visit with he who shall not be named - very telling and funny.
Also need to look back at this kid - #4 FB in the country. He says "I thought they were idiots."
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/20...
FEARinSEC writes:
Kevin Steele sure didn't have a great record as a head coach.... OUCH!!
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
Welcome to Tennessee Mr Steele! We're glad to have you!
RoyaltyVol#280778 writes:
The one thing all these newly hired coaches have in common is they are great recruiters, and I bet they recruit with their shirts on *LOL*
Mule_Days_King writes:
And don't give them the "Captain Caveman" yell like the Ogre did.
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