Knoxville: Crompton arthroscopic surgery successful

KNOXVILLE — Tennessee quarterback Jonathan Crompton underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his throwing elbow this morning in his home state of North Carolina, according to an athletic department release.

Crompton and the rest of UT’s offense occasionally struggled this spring while learning new coordinator Dave Clawson’s system, but the Volunteers’ No. 1 quarterback starred in Saturday’s Orange and White game. Crompton completed 13 of 20 passes for 266 yards, three touchdowns and one interception against UT’s second-team defense.

Crompton said moments after the game that today’s surgery was “very, very, very minor,” and that he should be back to 100 percent in “about a month.”

The release said he should return to “full activity” in three to five weeks.

The procedure removed “loose bodies” — small pieces of cartilage or bone chips — from the area surrounding Crompton’s elbow joint. He played through the discomfort this spring, his first without Erik Ainge ahead of him on the depth chart.

Two commitments

UT got two high school commitments this weekend to bring its 2009 signing class total up to five — counting junior college defensive linemen Rae Sykes and Cory Hall, formerly of Brainerd High School.

Henry County (Tenn.) running back/linebacker Dominique Allen committed to Coach Phillip Fulmer on Saturday, and versatile athlete Damien Thigpen of Manassas (Va.) Stonewall Jackson High School committed Sunday night.

Thigpen is listed at just 5-foot-8, 170 pounds but is one of the country’s fastest high school track stars. Rivals.com claims Thigpen ran a 4.34-second 40-yard dash and a 6.41-second 55-meter dash. Rivals lists him as one of the country’s 250 best rising senior football prospects, and he’d like to run for UT’s highly ranked track and field program.

The 5-11, 235-pound Allen is more known for his physical running style, and he’ll likely play fullback for the Vols. He is not currently ranked by Rivals, but a spokesperson for the Web site said he would be in the near future.

Allen had an offer sheet that included Mississippi State and Wake Forest, and Ole Miss and Miami were among the other schools recruiting him. Thigpen had offers from Auburn, West Virginia, Stanford, Boston College and Minnesota. Home-state programs Virginia and Virginia Tech have also been recruiting him.