Vols' Aubrey Solomon granted immediate eligibility

Tennessee head football coach Jeremy Pruitt works with redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Aubrey Solomon (98) during a drill at Wednesday's practice at Haslem Field.
Tennessee head football coach Jeremy Pruitt works with redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Aubrey Solomon (98) during a drill at Wednesday's practice at Haslem Field.

KNOXVILLE - With the season opener only four days away and some negative news surrounding the program, Tennessee's football Volunteers received a bit of good news Tuesday evening.

Junior defensive lineman Aubrey Solomon, the Michigan transfer who had appealed to the NCAA for a waiver that would keep him from having to sit out this season, found out that he had been granted immediate eligibility and will be available against Georgia State on Saturday.

Volquest.com was the first to break the news.

He will have two years of eligibility remaining beginning this fall.

"I'm beyond excited to be playing football this season," Solomon said in a statement. "I can't wait to suit up with my brothers. I want to thank my mom, Coach Pruitt, Coach (Tracy) Rocker and the Tennessee administration and compliance staff for helping me throughout this process. I'm ready to roll. Go Vols."

The 6-foot-5, 299-pounder is an important addition to the defensive line, if for no other reason than he becomes the senior member of a group that lost senior Emmit Gooden recently to a torn ACL. Solomon played in 18 games in two seasons for the Wolverines, totaling 24 tackles, two for loss. He played in all 13 games of the Wolverines' 8-5 2017 season, with 18 tackles that year.

Only three Tennessee defensive linemen - Matthew Butler, Ja'Quain Blakley and John Mincey - have played a snap at that position at the Football Bowl Subdivision level.

Now four have.

"Aubrey is a guy that a lot of coaches on our staff knew when he was a young man in high school, and we all recruited him," Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt said last December when the Vols signed Solomon. "He can play all three downs. He's a powerful man. He's smart. He's a good student. He has experience, having already played at the collegiate level. He is a great addition to our university and our football program."

The Leesburg, Georgia, resident was a top-five defensive tackle prospect in 2017 when he signed with Michigan.

Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3 or at Facebook.com/VolsUpdate.

Upcoming Events