Tennessee football announces newcomers on campus for spring semester, offseason workouts

Tennessee football on Thursday announced the players from the 2024 signing class that are on campus and going through classes, including the entire eight-player NCAA Transfer Portal class added by head coach Josh Heupel and the Vols.

Spring semester classes began on Tennessee’s campus on Tuesday and offseason football workouts started on Monday. All the players announced by the Vols could go through spring practice in March and April.

The transfer class is made up of receiver Chris Brazzell II (Tulane), offensive lineman Lance Heard (LSU), tight end Miles Kitselman (Alabama), defensive back Jermod McCoy (Oregon State), defensive back Jalen McMurray (Temple), defensive lineman Jaxson Moi (Stanford), tight end Holden Staes (Notre Dame) and defensive back Jakobe Thomas (MTSU).

Tennessee’s 2024 class ranked 11th nationally

The prep prospects who signed in December and were announced by Tennessee on Thursday were offensive lineman Max Anderson, athlete Boo Carter, defensive back Endrees Farooq, offensive linemen Gage Ginther, defensive back Marcus Goree Jr., running back Peyton Lewis, defensive lineman Kellen Lindstrom, wide receiver Mike Matthews, quarterback Jake Merklinger, offensive lineman Jesse Perry, offensive lineman William Satterwhite and wide receiver Braylon Staley.

Tennessee’s 2024 recruiting class is currently raked 11th national and seventh in the SEC with a class score of 91.37. The group’s prep prospects were headlined by two five-stars in edge rusher Jordan Ross and Matthews, the five-star wide receiver. Other four stars in the class included Staley, Carter, Merklinger, Lewis, Satterwhite, Anderson, Lindstrom, linebacker Edwin Spillman, cornerback Kaleb Beasley and offensive tackle Bennett Warren.

Staes, the former Notre Dame tight end, was the first transfer commitment. Heard and Moi, both committing on Sunday afternoon, are the last additions to the class.

Tennessee’s 2024 NCAA Transfer Portal Class

Chris Brazzell II (Tulane)

Tulane sophomore receiver Chris Brazzell II caught 44 passes for 711 yards and five touchdowns with the Green Wave this season, appearing in 13 games. He caught one pass for 11 yards in two games as a freshman in 2022. His father, Chris Brazzell palled 14 games for the Dallas Cowboys over the 1999 and 2000 seasons, catching seven passes for 126 yards. He was sixth-round draft pick in 1998. Chris Brazzell II was a three-star prospect in the 2022 class out of Midland Legacy High School in Midland, Texas.

Lance Heard (LSU)

Lance Heard, the 6-foot-6, 340-pound offensive lineman from Monroe, La., was a five-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting class. In the On3 ratings he was ranked No. 11 overall nationally as well as No. 2 among offensive tackle prospects and No. 2 overall in the state of Louisiana. He entered the NCAA Transfer Portal on January 2 and took an official visit to Tennessee just days later. It’s been a waiting game since then.

Miles Kitselman (Alabama)

Alabama tight end Miles Kitselman committed to Tennessee during his visit to Knoxville on January 12. He appeared in 13 games last season for the Crimson Tide, but played only 23 offensive snaps while contributing mainly on special teams. He played 33 offensive snaps and had two catches for 16 yards at Alabama during the 2022 season, after transferring from Hutchinson Community College.

Jermod McCoy (Oregon State)

Freshman Oregon State defensive back Jermod McCoy had 31 tackles with two interceptions, a fumble recovery and seven passes defended this season. The 6-foot, 180-pound McCoy, out of Whitehouse, Texas, was a three-star wide receiver prospect in the 2023 recruiting class. 

Jalen McMurray (Temple)

Temple defensive back Jalen McMurray committed to Tennessee on January 9. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound McMurray played 24 games at Temple over the last three season, finishing with 90 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and one interception. He had 11 pass defended and one fumble recovery, along with two forced fumbles. 

Jaxson Moi (Stanford)

Jaxson Moi, the 6-foot-2, 303-pound defensive lineman from Oceanside, Calif., played 24 games the last two seasons at Stanford. He recorded 37 tackles, including 5.5 tackles for loss and 1.0 sacks, with three passes defended. Moi was a three-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class, ranked by On3 as the No. 44 among defensive linemen and No. 28 overall in the state of California.

Holden Staes (Notre Dame)

Holden Staes became Tennessee’s first commitment out of the NCAA Transfer Portal in this cycle on December 15. The 6-foot-4, 242-pound Staes spent the last two seasons with the Fighting Irish. He caught 15 passes for 176 yards and four touchdowns in 11 games this season, after catching one pass for 11 yards as a freshman in 2022. He was a four-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class out of Westminster School in Atlanta, Ga. He was ranked as the No. 9 tight end his class and was the No. 23 overall player in the state of Georgia. He was ranked No. 201 overall in the On3 ratings.

Jakobe Thomas (MTSU)

Middle Tennessee State defensive back Jakobe Thomas, who initially committed to Oregon State after entering the NCAA Transfer Portal, flipped to Tennessee on December 16, giving the Vols .The 6-foot-2, 190-pound safety over the last two seasons had 108 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and four interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown, to go with eight passes defended, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. He had 37 tackles in 12 games in 2022, with 1.0 tackles for loss and all four interceptions, in 2022. He had 71 tackles, including 3.0 tackles for loss, in 11 games this season. Thomas attended Tullahoma High School in Tullahoma, Tenn.