Tennessee’s losses are Mississippi’s gains in the dizzying world of the NCAA transfer portal.
The top two portal departures for the Volunteers in recent days, defensive end Tyler Baron and safety Tamarion McDonald, announced Saturday that they would play their fifth-year senior seasons for Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss. Baron and McDonald are 2020 Tennessee signees who combined for 89 appearances and 32 starts during their stints in Knoxville.
Ole Miss also has obtained commitments from former Oklahoma safety Key Lawrence and former Florida edge rusher Princely Umanmielen. Lawrence signed with Tennessee in 2020 and played one season for the Vols before transferring to the Sooners, while Umanmielen led this season’s Gators with 11.5 tackles for loss, seven sacks and 17 quarterback hurries.
Kiffin this past Thursday praised The Grove Collective, which is the Ole Miss-exclusive program for name, image and likeness (NIL).