'15 JuCo DT David "DJ" Jones

I know your obsessed with the numbers, but do you really think there is any way that we wouldn't take one of McKenzie, Settle or DJ Jones if they all wanted to come here? I can't see Butch making that mistake, and I would be livid if we found out that they did turn one of those guys down.

I'd expect the coaches have an idea of how many they can/will take at any given position in any recruiting class. As with most cases when your talking about stockpiling elite talent at a given position, more often than not you don't have to worry about telling 1 of 3-4 top DTs no thanks as once you sign 1-2, the rest look to go elsewhere. It's hard to sell 3-4 kids on being "the man" when they know your telling that same thing to the other 2-3 guys your trying to sign at the position.

Do I think CBJ would tell 1 of McKenzie, Settle, or Jones no? I doubt it. But IMO it won't come to that. I think it will come down to McKenzie and 1 more kid choosing to be a Vol at DT for 2015.
 
I'd expect the coaches have an idea of how many they can/will take at any given position in any recruiting class. As with most cases when your talking about stockpiling elite talent at a given position, more often than not you don't have to worry about telling 1 of 3-4 top DTs no thanks as once you sign 1-2, the rest look to go elsewhere. It's hard to sell 3-4 kids on being "the man" when they know your telling that same thing to the other 2-3 guys your trying to sign at the position.

Do I think CBJ would tell 1 of McKenzie, Settle, or Jones no? I doubt it. But IMO it won't come to that. I think it will come down to McKenzie and 1 more kid choosing to be a Vol at DT for 2015.

Fair enough. I think it is still very possible to get 2 HS DTs and 1 juco guy to add to that immediate depth. I don't think McKenzie or Settle would be deterred if we already had one of the top juco guys because they know he will only be there for 2 years at the most. Getting those 3 would be my ideal situation.
 
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I think they lost a lot on defense that will be hard to replace. They will be good, but I can't see them winning 11 again. We'll see.

Correct. And they lost a lot on offense too. In predicting an 8 win season for them, maybe 9.
 
On Auburn visit...

"I took that long car ride and it was worth it," Jones told AuburnSports.com. "They shed the light on a lot of things. They are serious over here. It's not just a ticket, it's a chance to play in the NFL and have a great career under a great coach like Coach (Rodney) Garner."

"They are up there," he said. "Honestly, after what I saw today and what I heard, I didn't get to do a lot of things I did other places, but they won over all of that just be sitting down and talking to them."

"I will take an official visit here. I figured that after today. The only other one I know is Tennessee right now."

Auburn's depth at his position is something that Jones paid close attention to during his talk with Garner. "That's really important," he said. "He broke that down to me. He said they are going to have one or two defensive tackles when I would come in and that's important. That's something I haven't seen anywhere else."

-Auburn Rivals
 
If we can get the right 3, we take all 3.

There were some on here who swore we would take all four of McKenzie, Settle, Jones and Johnson if all four wanted in. I know DT is one of the most important positions as that position has been what has separated the SEC from the rest of the field, but you can't overload on any position and neglect others. There has to be balance and that is why the staff has a map of how many of each position they want on the roster every year. For that reason, I believe they take Big Mac and whoever pulls the trigger first between Settle and Jones. This of course assumes all three of them choose UT.
 
There were some on here who swore we would take all four of McKenzie, Settle, Jones and Johnson if all four wanted in. I know DT is one of the most important positions as that position has been what has separated the SEC from the rest of the field, but you can't overload on any position and neglect others. There has to be balance and that is why the staff has a map of how many of each position they want on the roster every year. For that reason, I believe they take Big Mac and whoever pulls the trigger first between Settle and Jones. This of course assumes all three of them choose UT.

I don't think UT passing on Sterling Johnson was as much of a numbers decision as it was his spring performance. His stock had dropped quite a bit with many schools apparently and that's why the UT staff wanted him to camp next month and prove himself worthy of a spot.
 
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There were some on here who swore we would take all four of McKenzie, Settle, Jones and Johnson if all four wanted in. I know DT is one of the most important positions as that position has been what has separated the SEC from the rest of the field, but you can't overload on any position and neglect others. There has to be balance and that is why the staff has a map of how many of each position they want on the roster every year. For that reason, I believe they take Big Mac and whoever pulls the trigger first between Settle and Jones. This of course assumes all three of them choose UT.

Well, I understand there has to be balance, you must also understand that for every one DL that is great, you normally recruit several that don't pan out. How many DL have we taken that didn't produce the results we expected?
DL are OL are the two positions where you take as many as you can get, because injuries occur more frequently, talent translates less frequently, and the more players you can rotate in, the better.

If those 3 want to come, you absolutely do take them. You have no guarantee of any of the current recruits or newcomers working out.

I know we only have a few spots, but still. Games are won and loss in the trenches in the SEC.
 
I don't think UT passing on Sterling Johnson was as much of a numbers decision as it was his spring performance. His stock had dropped quite a bit with many schools apparently and that's why the UT staff wanted him to camp next month and prove himself worthy of a spot.

I agree, but still don't believe they can take 4 DT's this class. Thankfully, I'm not the one having to make these decisions. I'm just excited that we are back in the position that we are even in the picture with that many high level recruits at almost every position. Can't wait to see how this all shakes out. I trust this staff and their ability to recruit.
 
I agree, but still don't believe they can take 4 DT's this class. Thankfully, I'm not the one having to make these decisions. I'm just excited that we are back in the position that we are even in the picture with that many high level recruits at almost every position. Can't wait to see how this all shakes out. I trust this staff and their ability to recruit.

Like Ron said in another thread....you have a chance at SIX 5* players in this class.

1. Gibson
2. McKenzie (If he gets bumped)
3. Settle
4. D.J. Jones
5. Preston Williams
6. Drew Richmond (If bumped)

You don't turn that down. That's monstrous for not just image, but 3 Top DL, 1 Top OL, 1 Top WR, and a Top QB? Sounds just about exactly what this program has needed for a long time.
 
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I agree, but still don't believe they can take 4 DT's this class. Thankfully, I'm not the one having to make these decisions. I'm just excited that we are back in the position that we are even in the picture with that many high level recruits at almost every position. Can't wait to see how this all shakes out. I trust this staff and their ability to recruit.

That's probably true, I see them taking 2-3 DT's this class. 4 would be great but they won't reach on players and it's highly unlikely 4 elite DT's will want to sign with the same school.
 
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Like Ron said in another thread....you have a chance at SIX 5* players in this class.

1. Gibson
2. McKenzie (If he gets bumped)
3. Settle
4. D.J. Jones
5. Preston Williams
6. Drew Richmond (If bumped)

You don't turn that down. That's monstrous for not just image, but 3 Top DL, 1 Top OL, 1 Top WR, and a Top QB? Sounds just about exactly what this program has needed for a long time.


Man, that type of recruiting is going to get us back to an elite level in CFB. This is going to be a looong summer as I am so anxious to see team 118 and how these new recruits are going to impact the play on the field.
 
#3 on UT's DT Recruiting Board.

D.J. Jones DT, 6-2/310, Scooba, Miss.

A number of schools seem to be in play for possibly the top junior college defensive lineman. Jones, originally from the Greenville, S.C., knows the two instate schools, Clemson and South Carolina, very well. He grew up going to Clemson games and his sister attends South Carolina.

But, Jones feels like he has a special bond with Tennessee as the Vols helped place him at East Mississippi Community College and were the only school to continue to recruit him all the way through high school to this point. He's already visited once this spring and will make an official visit to Tennessee in the fall before deciding.
-VolQuest.com
 
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big time juco d linemen not been very very good to us.

These 2 went the JC route and worked out pretty well as All Americans. Several more JC's were all SEC.

Jesse Mahelona burst onto the Tennessee football scene in a big way in 2004 being named All-America by The Sporting News

Leonard Little earned All-America status his senior year in 1997 and was named the Associated Press' SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year. He had a team-leading 87 tackles and collected 8.5 quarterback sacks in leading the Vols to the 1997 SEC championship.
 
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These 2 went the JC route and worked out pretty well as All Americans. Several more JC's were all SEC.

Jesse Mahelona burst onto the Tennessee football scene in a big way in 2004 being named All-America by The Sporting News

Leonard Little earned All-America status his senior year in 1997 and was named the Associated Press' SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year. He had a team-leading 87 tackles and collected 8.5 quarterback sacks in leading the Vols to the 1997 SEC championship.

Too be fair...We have had some disappointments with the JUCO route as well
 
I'll admit I expected to hear the MS schools would be in the hunt by now. Maybe DJ is not going to allow the handlers to influence his decision. Jones and McKenzie for 2015 would be great at DT.
 
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