Dennis Thames

chavisut · 07-23-2008, 02:36 AM

4* Rivals 250 Athlete

Tennessee: "I went up to their camp and it was awesome. I took a picture with Coach Fulmer and he sent it back to me in the mail. That made me feel good because I was looking good in that orange jersey (laugh). I look good in that Tennessee jersey. That stood out to me a lot."

Says we're in his top 5 with Michigan, Ole Miss, MSU, and LSU.

Volsguy12 · 07-23-2008, 03:07 AM

reel him in

rexvol · 07-23-2008, 08:22 AM

Rivals Profile

Louisville (MS) Louisville High School

Ht: 5-foot-11
Wt: 175 lbs
Forty: 4.4 secs
Bench max: 230 pounds
Squat max: 345 pounds
Vertical: 26 inches
Class: 2009 (High School)

Dennis Thames, the 6-foot, 183-pound safety/wide receiver from Louisville, Miss., continues to favor Mississippi State solidly over Michigan, LSU, Auburn and Ole Miss. All of his favorites offered except LSU.

Thames admits he grew up following LSU and is still hoping the Tigers offer. "I've always watched them on TV and have always been a big fan of theirs," he said. "I'd love to go there, but they haven't offered. I'll just wait and see what happens. They invited me to their camp and I'm gonna go and do my best."

Thames is going to have a busy summer because besides the LSU camp, he also plans to attend camps at Michigan, Auburn, Mississippi State and Ole Miss.

"I'm going to go to as many camps as I can this summer," he said. "I want to find good coaches to play for that are good teachers and will help me get better."

One school that Thames is looking forward to visiting in particular is Michigan. "They are a big school and I like the new spread offense they are gonna run," he said. "I think I'd fit in really well in their offense and I'd love to play receiver for them. They've talked about both offense and defense, so we'll see."

Either way, in-state favorite Mississippi State is going to be hard to beat. "They are only 30 minutes away and I'd prefer to stay close," he said. "It would be nice to be able to come home during the weekends

STADIUM NEAR YOU: Dennis Thames is living the life of a big leaguer this week while spending time with his uncle, Tigers outfielder Marcus Thames.

But he could hit the big time on his own in 2009 as a University of Michigan football player.

Thames, 18, a safety and running back from Louisville, Miss., is entering his senior year of high school as the country's No. 218 college football recruit, according to Rivals.com. He said he toured the UM campus in Ann Arbor on Tuesday and met with some Wolverines coaches, notably defensive coordinator Scott Shafer.

The younger Thames said he left his visit impressed.

"They sounded like nice coaches, good coaches to be around," Dennis said while seated in front of his uncle's locker, dressed in Tigers baseball pants and hat before batting practice. "Michigan would be my No. 1 right now. They've come at me the most and recruited me."

rexvol · 07-23-2008, 08:24 AM

he does not have an offer from LSU yet.

ChiTownVol · 07-23-2008, 11:02 AM

Fast little guy isn't he? He'd be a solid pick up, but it would still be nice to get some help on D in the front 7

zjcvols · 07-23-2008, 11:12 AM

you can never have too many athletes in my opinion

govols182 · 07-23-2008, 11:28 AM

We need a Safety or 2 in this class. Him and Myles would be perfect.

CO Vol · 07-23-2008, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by govols182

We need a Safety or 2 in this class. Him and Myles would be perfect.

Unless he blows up physically this next year and becomes a LB prospect, Hunter is projected as a safety, so there's one.

Gotta love a safety with the last name Hunter!

govols182 · 07-23-2008, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CO Vol

Unless he blows up physically this next year and becomes a LB prospect, Hunter is projected as a safety, so there's one.

Gotta love a safety with the last name Hunter!

DJ Hunter is listed as a CB.

ryancy · 07-23-2008, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by govols182

DJ Hunter is listed as a CB.

just because Rivals lists a player as something doesn't mean thats what he is recruited for.

look at Hunter's size/speed/film.. he's a hard hitting Safety

Eric Berry and Morley were both top ranked CBs by Rivals

zehr27 · 07-23-2008, 11:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryancy

just because Rivals lists a player as something doesn't mean thats what he is recruited for.

look at Hunter's size/speed/film.. he's a hard hitting Safety

Eric Berry and Morley were both top ranked CBs by Rivals

I agree, I think Hunter will be a safety for us when it is all said and done.

mitzustu · 07-23-2008, 12:02 PM

wat about Nyshier Oliver

govols182 · 07-23-2008, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryancy

just because Rivals lists a player as something doesn't mean thats what he is recruited for.

look at Hunter's size/speed/film.. he's a hard hitting Safety

Eric Berry and Morley were both top ranked CBs by Rivals

Berry actually played CB before we needed him at SS. If we had better SS behind him, I'm pretty sure he would still be at CB. If Jarrod Parrish was a decent SS last year, he would still be playing CB. Berry is playing SS out of necessity at the position.

ryancy · 07-23-2008, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by govols182

Berry actually played CB before we needed him at SS. If we had better SS behind him, I'm pretty sure he would still be at CB. If Jarrod Parrish was a decent SS last year, he would still be playing CB. Berry is playing SS out of necessity at the position.

I think that was before the coaches knew exactly what they had in Berry.

I would think he'd be a CB at the next level, but Berry's talents are better used as a safety in college.

so I don't get too off topic, Thames seems like a good one and with all the top kids that are really interested in the Vols in this class, whoever we land should set the secondary up for success for the next several years.

zjcvols · 07-23-2008, 02:17 PM

Unless Vereen and Anderson really improve this year, we definetely need safety depth. I think Hunter will cb b/c we lose 2 of our top 5 guys next year so he will probably stay at cb.