“I just wanted to come visit Knoxville again. I love it up there,” he told Volquest. “The coaches wanted me to come. I came up, spent time with coach Wells. I watched the scrimmage and had dinner with coach Thigpen and coach Wells. Saw the new dorms that they put up. They’re good.”
Unije was not on the IMG barnstorming tour that went to Georgia, South Carolina, Clemson and Tennessee in early March, but he attended Tennessee’s spring game last season and holds the Vols in high regard. During his visit over the weekend, he had a chance to speak with linebacker Quart’e Sapp about the coaching staff and watch some of Tennessee’s scrimmage. “He’s from my area in Georgia, and he told me, ‘They’re good. But when you come just be prepared to work.’”
His takeaways on Saturday’s scrimmage? “Their defensive is going to be nasty. But their offensive line could use a lot of work,” Unije said. “I saw an (opportunity) for myself.”
Unije has as clear-cut checklist for wherever he opts to play in college, focusing on “my connections with the coaches. The environment, and just to see if I have a connection with the alumni that they have. I want to talk to the players to ask them to give me a candid review of the coaches.”
The future early enrollee doesn’t have any favorites just yet, but Unije admitted Alabama and Oklahoma currently stand out “only because I have a better connection with those coaches.” Tennessee is still a factor, though, and Unije hopes to visit again sometime this summer or fall. He knows he’s a wanted man in Knoxville. “They said they want me really bad,” Unije offered. “That I can play really early there.”
