the top-100 sophomore running back from hillside high school in durham, n.c., said tennessee still is on top among the 10 schools pursuing him following his visit last weekend for the vols spring-ending orange and white game.
the second time (at tennessee), for the spring game, it was just good, said elliott, whos ranked by 247sports as the nations no. 59 overall prospect and no. 5 running back in the 2018 class. it was an even better atmosphere with the fans there, so thats what kind of made it a better place. What surprised me was just the fans they were just all loud and the support they have. I think there was, like, 60,000-something that came. That really shocked me the most. Just being at a spring game with all those fans, i just cant imagine how it would be at a real game where thered be, like, 100,000-something people.
i think tennessee, its just a family atmosphere, he said. its just more of a family. When you go to tennessee, youve got people always speaking to you. Youre bonding with the coaches. And just seeing the facilities, and tennessee is tops in education. Thats what got me. i love football, but no matter what, that comes second to me. Im looking at those programs to see how it is, what best fits me.
he said he also spent time with tennessee running backs coach robert gillespie after the spring game, and he already has built a strong relationship with gillespie since getting an early offer from the vols nearly nine months ago.
Gillespie has made it clear to me, elliott said, that hes a high priority for tennessee.
me and coach gillespie, weve got a good relationship. I try to call him once a week, and weve just carried our relationship from there, elliott said. whats great about coach gillespie, hes going to be honest with you, and the words that came out of his mouth were, when you come to tennessee, youve got to be ready to play. thats one thing i like about coach gillespie: Hes going to be real with you all the time.
