KNOXVILLE – A change of heart means Sheriron Jones is coming back to Tennessee.
Earlier this month the freshman quarterback decided to transfer to Colorado, but the Buffaloes announced Friday afternoon they had granted Jones a release from his scholarship and he planned to return to Tennessee.
Tennessee cannot confirm anything regarding Jones’ return until it receives his official release papers, program official Ryan Robinson said.
That was expected to happen later Friday.
“My job is to work with the whole person,” head coach Mike MacIntyre said in Colorado’s release. “Each player is unique and comes with unique needs and concerns. Throughout the past couple of weeks, Sheriron and I have spent a lot of time trying to sort out his circumstances.”
There is an NCAA rule that allows players to return to the school from which they transferred if the decision to do so is made within 14 days.
Furthermore, Colorado had to release him from his scholarship within that time frame for him to be eligible to play this season, and Jones also had to be readmitted to Tennessee before the deadline to add or drop classes for the spring semester.
It’s very rare for a player to return to the program from which he’s decided to transfer, but in this case Jones simply wanted to return to Tennessee, according to a program source.
The 6-foot-2, 208-pound former four-star recruit out of California redshirted this season as Tennessee’s No. 3 quarterback behind starter Josh Dobbs and backup Quinten Dormady, also a freshman.
Jarrett Guarantano will give the Vols a fourth quarterback when he signs with Tennessee in 11 days.
North to the NFL
The NFL released its official list of draft early entrants Friday, and as expected it included Tennessee wide receiver Marquez North.
As a junior North played in just games due to a lingering back injury and finished with six catches for 58 yards.
In his injury-plagued career the former four-star recruit caught 74 passes for 874 yards and five touchdowns in 28 games.
Change in plans
The wintry weather expected in Knoxville and across the region this weekend impacted the plans of a couple of Tennessee’s official visitors.
Two prospects expected to visit this weekend – Nashville linebacker and Tennessee commitment Daniel Bituli and uncommitted Louisiana receiver Mykel Jones – won’t make it into town, and Euless (Texas) defensive tackle Chris Daniels had his flight delayed until this morning.
Nashville offensive lineman and longtime Tennessee commitment Ryan Johnson and Lake City (Fla.) wide receiver Latrell Williams, a Miami commitment, are expected to make it to Knoxville.
Tennessee’s most important recruiting weekend of the offseason will be next weekend, the final one before signing day.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com