“The recruiting coach called me and told me the d-line coach loved my film. He said I was a great player and wanted me to come to Tennessee, so they offered,” Charlton told Volquest. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Miami native holds early offers from Nebraska, Baylor, Mississippi State and Illinois, among others, and while he’s favored the Cornhuskers ever since receiving his first offer, a scholarship from a SEC program was eye-opening.
Charlton remains good friends with Johnson, and said he immediately called Tennessee’s freshman defensive lineman upon learning about the offer. “We’re real close friends. The d-line, we made it a family. We have our own group chat and we still text each other to this day. I’ve talked with DJ about (the offer). He said Tennessee is a very good college,” Charlton explained.
“They’re up front and they tell the truth about everything. He told me the chemistry is just like ours at Southridge. The school is perfect for him, and everybody say that me and DreDay are practically the same person, so I feel like I could fit in too. It was good advice.”
Charlton was a menace off the edge for Southridge en route to a state title in 2016, recording 15 sacks and a bunch of tipped passes as a playmaker up front. His favorite player is Vic Beasley, and he showcased his explosive first step at the Miami Under Armour camp in March.
Since earning the UT offer, he’s begun to make contact with new Tennessee defensive line coach Brady Hoke. He can’t wait to visit Knoxville sometime this summer and said the Vols are already firmly in his top group. “I’ve talked with the defensive line coach. We’ve been texting. He said he was excited to offer,” Charlton said. "Right now, I’m starting to narrow done my schools, so in the summer I can start taking trips. Tennessee definitely already made the list. They already up there.”
