KNOXVILLE -- Tennessee beat out Auburn, Miami and Georgia to land a commitment from a South Florida running back.
Carlin Fils-Aime (pronounced "fills-uh-MEE"), out of Naples High School, pledged to the Volunteers on his Twitter account Thursday morning. He had visited Tennessee last weekend for its second "Orange Carpet Day" of the summer.
"As of today, I am a Tennessee commit," he posted on Twitter.
A four-star prospect according to 247Sports.com, Fils-Aime recently named Auburn his leader after visiting the Tigers, and one of his teammates, defensive back Tyler Byrd, is committed to Miami.
In the spring, he reportedly narrowed his list to Tennessee, Auburn, Miami, Georgia and North Carolina.
"Just the feeling of hanging out with the coaches (at Tennessee) and the people they surround themselves with, I knew," Fils-Aime told the Naples Daily News of his commitment. "I love talking with Coach (Butch) Jones. He's hysterical."
Tennessee needed a big-time running back to add to its 2016 class, and the Vols were after some other targets who fit that bill. B.J. Emmons, a four-star out of North Carolina, committed to Alabama earlier this month. The Vols made the final five for Atlanta-area back Elijah Holyfield, and Clemson commitment Tavien Feaster visited last weekend.
The Vols gladly took a commitment from the 5-foot-11, 180-pound Fils-Aime, the No. 12 running back in the country according to ESPN.
Fils-Aime, who's reportedly been timed at 4.42 seconds in the 40-yard dash, ran for 873 yards and 15 touchdowns as a sophomore, but he underwent surgery for an ankle injury that cut short his junior season after just three weeks, though he put up 232 yards and three touchdowns in that short span.
He ran for 150 yards and four touchdowns on just 10 carries in Naples' spring game.
Tennessee, which can sign only about 18 players in this cycle, is up to 14 public commitments for its 2016 class.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.