Tennessee sophomore receiver Malachi Wideman, one of the highest-rated members of Jeremy Pruitt's final full signing class, is no longer listed on the program's official online roster.
Wideman was unable to practice this spring due to a hamstring injury and was not present, according to 247Sports.com, for the practice periods open to the media leading up to the Orange & White game on April 24. The 6-foot-4, 200-pounder from Sarasota, Florida, was not spotted at the spring contest.
Having appeared in six games last season - Missouri, Kentucky, Alabama, Auburn, Florida and Vanderbilt - Wideman's only catch was a 24-yarder from Harrison Bailey in the waning stages of the 34-7 loss to Kentucky inside Neyland Stadium that sent the Volunteers into their 3-7 tailspin. That was Bailey's first career completion in a year in which he ascended to starting status.
Wideman was a solid four-star signee in 2020, having been pegged as the nation's No. 22 receiver and No. 117 prospect overall on the 247Sports.com composite rankings. He committed to Florida State in the spring of 2019 but opened up his recruitment once the Seminoles and former coach Willie Taggart parted ways.
Tennessee is moving on without two of its top four 2020 signees, with safety Key Lawrence out of Nashville having entered the NCAA transfer portal earlier this year and having since landed at Oklahoma.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.
A PACKED HOUSE
The University of Tennessee announced Tuesday afternoon that Neyland Stadium will operate at full capacity for the 2021 football season. "I know our fans are eager to experience the rich pageantry of Tennessee football game days again, and they're going to have an exciting brand of football to rally around," athletic director Danny White said in a release. "This will be my first football season at Tennessee, and after witnessing the power of Vol Nation during our recent baseball postseason run, I cannot wait to see the impact of our fans giving their all in a packed Neyland Stadium." - David Paschall