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Trail Tidbits: Recapping week 6 of the high school season, previewing a big weekend at Tennessee

4A3DA472-0F39-4C89-9987-5851509375C0by: Matt Ray09/27/23matt_ray_
Braylon Staley joins trail tidbits

Week 6 of the high school football season is officially in the books, and Tennessee is set to host an important slate of visitors as South Carolina comes to Knoxville for an SEC East showdown. Volquest recaps this week on the gridiron and looks ahead to a busy recruiting weekend on Rocky Top in this installment of “Trail Tidbits.”

Stat Sheet Stuffers

It was another big week for several Vol commitments in this category. Starting with four-star 2024 quarterback commitment Jake Merklinger, who had a massive three touchdown game in a cross-town rivalry against Savannah Christian. Merklinger went for 244 yards and a touchdown through the air, while also adding 77 yards and two scores on the ground against Savannah Christian. His efforts propelled Calvary day to a victory against the cross-town rival and top defender in the 2025 class, Elijah Griffin. Merklinger returns to Rocky Top this weekend for a visit.

Joining Merklinger in Knoxville this weekend is fellow Tennessee commitment Mike Matthews. The Parkview (Ga.) five-star hauled in six reception for 74 yards and a touchdown in a 30-20 loss to the defending state champions Mill Creek. Matthews also totaled 7 total tackles on Friday night.

Elsewhere, fellow receiver commitment Braylon Staley had another impressive night. He caught 11 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown.

Big Weekend on Rocky Top

Tennessee will host an important visit weekend on Rocky Top with 2024 four-stars Kam Mikell and Daniel Hill coming to town for official visits.

“This is an important visit for Tennessee, they’ve been at or near the top for Kam for a little while now, but other teams are continuing to swing really hard there, feels like Texas A&M’s probably the biggest threat to Tennessee right now to me,” Volquest’s Matt Ray told On3’s Josh Newberg on the Inside Scoop earlier this week. “But you can’t rule out the home state Georgia, they’ve recruited him as a defensive back for the duration … For Kam, I think ultimately he wants to play offense and that’s something that’s resonated well with the pitch he’s received from Tennessee.”

Tennessee gets Hill back to campus and will work to make a move in his recruitment as well. He has connected with Tennessee running backs coach Jerry Mack since the early stages of this recruitment, and the Vols will look to capitalize on that this weekend.

A number of current commitments are expected to be in town, as well as several coveted 2025 prospects. Be sure to follow Volquest throughout the week for continued recruiting coverage.

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