'17 GA ATH Marquez Bembry (UT signee)

"As soon as Marquez Bembry could tell something was wrong with his right knee, he started to worry about what it might mean for his college future.

The three-star senior athlete from Mount Vernon Presbyterian School in Atlanta, who has been committed to Tennessee since March, said he initially thought the injury he suffered early in his senior season — which turned out to be a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn meniscus — might cause the Vols to have second thoughts about signing him.

But the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Bembry’s fears turned out to be unfounded. Tennessee wasted no time letting him know, he said, that it had no intentions of parting ways with him.

“I’m not going to lie. I was pretty concerned,” said Bembry, who’s ranked the nation’s No. 529 overall prospect and No. 38 athlete in the 247Sports Composite for the 2017 class. “I thought they were going to just forget about me. But they stayed with me.

“My coach talked to them, he explained what happened, and they said that they wanted me no matter what. It takes a lot for somebody to say, ‘Even though you faced a knee injury, we still want you, anyway.’”

The Vols’ loyalty to him through his injury is one of the reasons Bembry said he’s “100 percent to Tennessee” and not planning to visit any other schools leading up to signing day.

“I’m 100 percent with everything because I think, at the end of the day, I know what I have to do to come in next year and try to change a few things on the defensive side, and hopefully we can just keep everybody healthy.”

Bembry, who’s being recruited by Tennessee as a projected defensive end, said he’s currently focusing on his ongoing recovery from the knee surgery he underwent on Oct. 4.

“I should be able to start running in between January and February — somewhere in there,” he said. “Physical therapy’s been going great. I’ve just been working on bending it. Right now, I’m at 128 degrees bending it, which is pretty good.

“And, more so, I’m working on getting my muscle back in it, building it up so that way it won’t be loose as I’m running. I’m trying to make it back for track season." -247
 
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Think I missed the part where he tore his ACL & meniscus. That sucks. Redshirt was likely anyways considering his weight and his projection as a DE.
 
Everyone who wants to dog Butch for dropping guys due to performance should give him credit for not dropping guys who get injured. Hall, Brooks, and now Bembry all come to mind.
 
I like it. Honor the commitment. Liked them doing it with Hall and Brooks as well.

They do a lot of things wrong recruiting wise. Honoring the commitment of injured recruits isn't one of them.

I agree, it worked out with Hall, Brooks is still pending but with the type of athlete that Bembry is if he is healthy he will be good.
 
The 6-foot-3, 214-pound Bembry said the official visit was his first overnight stay at Tennessee, and it allowed him to see “how much academic support they do have.”

Stripling watched some film with Bembry, he said, and talked with him “about the role that I would play” in Tennessee’s defense.

“It would be, like, a hybrid-type D-end where I would rush off the edge,” Bembry said. “I’d be like a hybrid D-end. I could rush off the edge and, with my athletic ability, I’d be able to drop back in coverage and cover running backs and tight ends and stuff like that, as well.
-Callahan

Bembry said he is solid and ready to enroll.
 
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This dude is quietly one of my favorite recruits in the class. Good size, excellent athlete. If he can put on some weight without losing much range, he's a gem.
 
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This guy is my favorite player in the class.. He is obviously not the best prospect to contribute early but I could see this dude being a beast as a RS Soph.. 30 more lbs. of muscle and maintain that speed and he could be a star in that hybrid role.. Also seems like a very well rounded young man.. We shall see
 
Coaches think he is a difference maker. Probably top 3 in our class. Know we were worried the dawgs would go all out...

Most that have seen his film laugh at the 3* ranking and become a little giddy thinking he is going to be a Vol. The worry about loosing him was real and I would agree that he is in the top 3 of potential difference makers.
 
Most that have seen his film laugh at the 3* ranking and become a little giddy thinking he is going to be a Vol. The worry about loosing him was real and I would agree that he is in the top 3 of potential difference makers.

prob would've gotten his 4th star if there was enough SR film on him. plus recruiting services tend to lower their rankings when kids tear their ACLs. just how it goes.
 
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prob would've gotten his 4th star if there was enough SR film on him. plus recruiting services tend to lower their rankings when kids tear their ACLs. just how it goes.

I don't really see anything wrong with that either. If the recruiting services are projecting success, you'd have to assume the odds of success go down when you have significant injuries.
 
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