Tennessee LB Elijah Herring announces plans to enter transfer portal
Elijah Herring was the first commitment in the 2022 recruiting class for Josh Heupel and staff. After starting 11 games last season for the Vols following the injury of veteran Keenan Pili, Herring has now announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal and pursue options elsewhere.
I'd like to thank Coach Huepel & the University of Tennessee for the opportunity to play in my home state. I appreciate all the support from the entire staff, my teammates, & fans. I have decided to enter the transfer portal & pursue other college opportunities. Love The Vols!
— Elijah Herring (@ElijahHerring12) April 16, 2024
In 2022, Herring played in 13 games as a reserve serving primarily as a special teams contributor. He totaled 11 tackles and two sacks during the season. He saw some time working in Tennessee’s third down package, where he contributed the most.
In 2023, after Pili went down with an injury in the season-opener against Virginia, Herring stepped into the starting role at middle linebacker. He finished 2023 with a team-leading 80 tackles, including 4 tackles for loss.
Tennessee remains in a good spot at the linebacker position despite the loss of Herring, with Pili returning for another season, veteran Kalib Perry remaining on the roster, and the continued emergence of sophomores Jeremiah Telander and Arion Carter. The Vols also bring in four-stars Edwin Spillman and Jordan Burns in the 2024 recruiting class.
Understanding the portal
College football has to transfer portal windows. The first opens in December and last 30 days. The second window opened on Tuesday, April 16th and closes on April 30th. Players don’t have to decide what school they are going to attend in that window, but they do have to enter the portal by April 30th or they are locked into their current team under the end of the 2024 season.
While the NCAA Transfer Portal database is private, the On3 Network has streamlined the reporting process tracking player movement. If you find yourself asking, ‘How can I track transfer portal activity?’ our well-established network of reporters and contacts across college athletics keeps you up to speed in several ways, from articles written about players as they enter and exit the transfer portal or find their new destination, to our social media channels, to the On3 Transfer Portal.
The transfer portal wire provides a real-time feed of player activity, including basic player profile information, transfer portal ranking and original On3 Industry recruiting ranking, as well as NIL valuation (name, image and likeness).
The On3 Transfer Portal Rankings allow for you to filter the On3 Industry Rankings to find the best of the best in the portal, starting with Overall Top Players.
You can dive deeper into the rankings and filter by position whether it is Quarterback, Running Back, Wide Receiver, Tight End, Offensive Tackle, Interior Offensive Line, Edge, Defensive Line, Linebacker, Cornerback, Safety, Athlete, Kicker, Punter, or Long Snapper you’re looking for.
The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.
