Tennessee flips UCLA 4-star DL commit Carter Gooden on National Signing Day

Josh Heupel and Tennessee got some much-needed good news on Wednesday, flipping four-star Tabor Academy (Mass.) defensive lineman Carter Gooden off his five-month pledge to UCLA.

Gooden took an official visit to Knoxville last weekend and came away impressed by the atmosphere, the culture in the program and the development of its players.

“The game day atmosphere at this place was insane,” Gooden told VolQuest. ”The fans were loud and screaming the whole time. I couldn’t really hear the person in the next seat. It was a good experience.”

He also got a chance to see how he’d fit into their scheme, which he sees as a great one to maximize his talents.

“They see me as a field side defensive end,” Gooden added. “That is exactly what I want to play. I see that they rotate a lot. They play a bunch of different guys and give them the ability to stop the run and rush the passer. It is not like they are limited to one thing or forced to just do one thing, so that was great to see.”

The 6-foot-4, 260-pounder is one of the premier defensive linemen in the country. He checks in as the nation’s No. 142 prospect and No. 14 DL, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, an equally weighted average that utilizes all three major recruiting services.

He joins a Vols class that is among the best in the country, coming into the day ranked No. 10 nationally and No. 5 in the SEC. Along with Gooden, Heupel and Co. have pledges along the defensive line from four-star edge rushers Hezekiah Harris and Zach Groves, four-star DL Dereon Albert, and three-star EDGEs Kedric Golston II and CJ Edwards. On Tuesday, they also added rising three-star defensive lineman Nic’Quayvion Simmons to the group.