Tennessee adds 18th football commitment, moves into second in 247Sports rankings

Staff photo by Robin Rudd / Tennessee football coach Jeremy Pruitt prepares to lead the Vols onto the field at Neyland Stadium for their 2019 season opener against Georgia State.

By David Paschall May 5, 2020 1 min read

Colby Smith

Tennessee received its 18th football commitment and its 16th out-of-state commitment for the 2021 signing class, receiving a nonbinding pledge Monday afternoon from offensive tackle Colby Smith of Rockingham High School in Reidsville, North Carolina.

The 6-foot-7, 295-pound Smith picked the Volunteers over scholarship offers from North Carolina, N.C. State and South Carolina. He is the nation’s No. 32 tackle prospect and the No. 374 overall recruit in the 247Sports.com composite rankings.

“After many nights of praying and asking for guidance, I have finally decided to commit to the University of Tennessee,” Smith posted on Twitter.

Smith’s commitment propelled Tennessee past North Carolina and into second place in the 247Sports team rankings behind Ohio State.

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.

David Paschall

David Paschall has covered sports at the Chattanooga Times Free Press since 1999 and wrote for the Chattanooga Free Press in the nine years before that. David has mostly covered college athletics, with a focus on the University of Georgia from 2000 to 2019 and the University of Tennessee since 2020. He grew up in Chattanooga and is a graduate of the Baylor School and Auburn University. David has received multiple writing awards and has served as a Heisman Trophy voter since 2003. He has also worked in radio in Chattanooga and has been on the SEC Network's "Classic Rewind" series since 2014. David and his wife, Kelly, have three children — Conner, Emily and Spencer.

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.