Vols land 4-star quarterback for 2020 recruiting class
Harrison Bailey stood behind a lectern with a large "M" on the front as he addressed the crowd during his commitment ceremony on Thursday.
The "M" wasn’t for Michigan. It’s for Marietta (Ga.) High School, where Bailey is a junior quarterback.
Bailey moved behind a table and grabbed an orange hat with a "T" on it, leaving the Michigan hat on the table.
Tennessee football has a quarterback committed to its 2020 class.
Bailey’s choice came down to the Vols and the Wolverines. Michigan doesn't have a quarterback committed to its 2019 or 2020 classes.
Bailey is a four-star prospect. One of his teammates, four-star wide receiver Ramel Keyton, is committed to UT's 2019 class. Bailey is the fourth player to commit to UT’s 2020 class.
Landing Bailey's commitment is a triumph for UT, especially considering it doesn’t have an offensive coordinator or quarterbacks coach following Tyson Helton’s departure Tuesday to take Western Kentucky’s head coaching job. That vacancy didn’t sway Bailey from Tennessee.
“If you know anything about me, I like to build stuff," Bailey told 247Sports. "I like taking a program that is not where he needs to be and taking it to where it should be. I like building stuff around me. I like to be the one. I want that responsibility.”
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Bailey is ranked third among pro-style quarterbacks in the 2020 recruiting class by the 247Sports composite.
"He’s got a strong arm, has developed a pretty quick release,” said Ryan Callahan, recruiting editor for GoVols247. “Fairly athletic, but mostly a pocket passer. Definitely a guy who’s going to fit well in a pro-style type of offense or a spread that throws it a lot."
Bailey completed 212 of 335 passes (63.3 percent) for 2,809 yards during his junior season with 29 touchdowns and six interceptions, according to MaxPreps.
"He plays in a wide-open offense that throws the ball a lot, and that’s allowed him to be really productive," Callahan said. "He’s also on a team that has a lot of talented receivers and even a tight end who’s a big-time prospect, so he’s surrounded by a lot of guys who have made his job even easier, but he’s a really good quarterback. There’s no question about it.”
Tennessee is set to return two scholarship quarterbacks next season. Jarrett Guarantano will be a junior, and JT Shrout will be a redshirt freshman. Additionally, three-star quarterback Brian Maurer is committed to UT's 2019 class.
Sophomore Will McBride, who finished this season as the Vols' fourthstring quarterback, announced Wednesday that he is transferring.