During the Tennessee Vols’ decade-long absence from prominence in college football, the program rarely contended for the nation’s top recruits, except in specific cases.
That has changed with Josh Heupel as head coach.
Under Heupel, Tennessee is now frequently in the running for many of the top recruits. Although they won’t win all of these battles, they are expected to secure enough to achieve at least a top 10 recruiting class in the 2025 cycle.
With the College Football Playoff expanding to 12 teams in 2024, consistently securing a top 10 recruiting class should enable Tennessee to compete for a playoff spot annually, especially when considering transfer players.
One of the latest high-profile recruiting battles for the Vols involves 2025 four-star edge rusher Mariyon Dye, who is also drawing interest from Florida State, Georgia, and Ohio State, in addition to Tennessee.
Dye, a 6-foot-5, 255-pound player from Elkhart, IN, is ranked by 247Sports’ composite as the No. 15 edge rusher in the nation and the No. 3 player in Indiana.
On3 recruiting analyst Charles Power described Dye as “one of the more physically-gifted prospects in the 2025 cycle.”
The talented edge rusher has scheduled official visits to Purdue, Georgia, Ohio State, Florida State, and Tennessee, with Tennessee getting the final visit on June 21 before Dye announces his commitment on August 3.
“When I’m there it feels like a winning program,” Dye told On3 about his interest in the Vols. “The way the coaches carry themselves and the way the players carry themselves.”
It is always challenging to out-recruit Georgia and Ohio State for elite talent, but the Vols appear to be in a strong position for Dye. Tennessee’s recent success with edge rushers (former UT edge rusher Byron Young had a standout rookie season with the Los Angeles Rams, and current Vols edge rusher James Pearce could be a top pick in next year’s NFL draft) should bolster their chances in this significant recruiting contest.
Tennessee currently has 10 players committed to its 2025 recruiting class.
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