Vols add linebacker, QB to list of pledges
Tennessee’s recent rampage in football recruiting didn’t take Mother’s Day off, with the Volunteers receiving nonbinding pledges Sunday afternoon from outside linebacker Aaron Willis of Baltimore and quarterback Kaidon Salter of Cedar Hill, Texas.
The 6-foot, 207-pound Willis is the nation’s No. 9 outside linebacker and No. 112 overall prospect in the 247Sports.com composite rankings.
“Our brand of defensive football is fast and physical,” Tennessee defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley posted on Twitter, “and the Vols just added an ERASER.” Willis became the second St. Frances Academy player in as many days to commit to the Vols. On Saturday, defensive tackle KaTron Evans made his announcement via Twitter with a “1000% committed” message followed by a GBO hashtag.
The double dose of Baltimore four-star talents gave Tennessee a whopping 20 commitments for the 2021 recruiting cycle, but the Vols quickly made it 21 with the addition of Salter. The 6-1, 185-pound Salter is rated by 247Sports as the No. 10 dual-threat quarterback nationally and the No. 280 prospect overall.
Tennessee now has 19 out-of-state commitments, which is more than any other Football Bowl Subdivision program has total commitments.
In the past two weeks, Tennessee has received commitments from eight top-300 national prospects — outside linebacker Terrence Lewis (No. 9), weakside defensive end Dylan Brooks (No. 21), Willis (No. 112), running back Cody Brown (No. 125), Evans (No. 179), receiver Julian Nixon (No. 240), safety Kamar Wilcoxson (No. 261) and Salter (No. 280).
Tennessee’s only top300 commitment before this recent run of success was receiver Jordan Mosley, who pledged to the Vols last June.