Tennessee football signing day live updates: Latest recruiting news

Tennessee football has landed the highest ranked recruiting class of Josh Heupel’s tenure, featuring five-star quarterback Faizon Brandon and five-star receiver Tristen Keys.

The early signing period began Dec. 3. The Vols have 28 players committed in the 2026 class.

Here are Tennessee’s signees, their 247Sports Composite rank and the latest recruiting news:

Tennessee football signees in 2026 class

Dereon Albert, DL

High school/Hometown: Jackson Academy/Jackson, Mississippi

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 305 pounds

Rank: 4 stars, No. 382 in nation, No. 41 at position

Zay Anderson, CB

High school/Hometown: Greeneville/Greeneville, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 165

Rank: 4 stars, No. 240 in nation, No. 11 at position

Edward Baker, OL

High school/Hometown: St. Francis Academy/Baltimore

Height/Weight: 6-4, 335

Rank: 3 stars, No. 961 in nation, No. 76 at position

Legend Bey, WR

High school/Hometown: North Forney/Heartland, Texas

Height/Weight: 5-10, 185

Rank: 4 stars, No. 175 in nation, No. 9 at position

Kamari Blair, OT

High school/Hometown: Kirkwood/Clarksville, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-6, 281

Rank: 4 stars, No. 152 in nation, No. 15 at position

Faizon Brandon, QB

High school/Hometown: Grimsley/Greensboro, North Carolina

Height/Weight: 6-4, 200 pounds

Rank: 5 stars, No. 7 in nation, No. 3 at position

Jordan Carter, EDGE

High school/Hometown: Douglas County/Douglasville, Georgia

Height/Weight: 6-3, 245

Rank: 4 stars, No. 203 in nation, No. 23 at position

Jowell Combay, S

High school/Hometown: Kell/Marietta, Georgia

Height/Weight: 6-1, 192

Rank: 3 stars, No. 629 in nation, No. 49 at position

CJ Edwards, EDGE

High school/Hometown: St. Joseph/Metuchen, New Jersey

Height/Weight: 6-3, 215

Rank: 3 stars, No. 676 in nation, No. 68 at position

JJ Finch, DL

High school/Hometown: Warren Central/Indianapolis, Indiana

Height/Weight: 6-2, 292

Rank: 3 stars, No. 573 in nation, No. 64 at position

Logan Foley, P

High school/Hometown: ProKick Australia/Melbourne, Australia

Height/Weight: 6-6, 230

Rank: Not rated

Kedric Golston II, DL

High school/Hometown: Stone Bridge/Ashburn, Virginia

Height/Weight: 6-2, 235

Rank: 4 stars, No. 448 in nation, No. 43 at position

Carter Gooden, DL

High school/Hometown: Tabor Academy/Marion, Massachusetts

Height/Weight: 6-4, 260

Rank: 4 stars, No. 147 in nation, No. 17 at position

Zach Groves, EDGE

High school/Hometown: East Robertson/Cross Plains, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-4, 255

Rank: 4 stars, No. 279 in nation, No. 27 at position

Hezekiah Harris, EDGE

High school/Hometown: Jemison/Jemison, Alabama

Height/Weight: 6-6, 235

Rank: 4 stars, No. 165 in nation, No. 21 at position

Tristen Keys, WR

High school/Hometown: Hattiesburg/Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Height/Weight: 6-3, 180

Rank: 5 stars, No. 11 in nation, No. 2 at position

Tyreek King, WR

High school/Hometown: Knoxville Catholic/Knoxville, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 5-11, 168

Rank: 4 stars, No. 108 in nation, No. 15 at position

KJ McClain, S

High school/Hometown: St. Joseph Regional/Montvale, New Jersey

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 165

Rank: 3 stars, No. 676 in nation, No. 50 at position

Gabriel Osenda, OT

High school/Hometown: Baylor School/Chattanooga, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-7, 330

Rank: 4 stars, No. 90 in nation, No. 11 at position

Darryl Rivers, DL

High school/Hometown: McEachern/Powder Springs, Georgia

Height/Weight: 6-5, 270

Rank: 4 stars, No. 514 in nation, No. 58 at position

Brayden Rouse, LB

High school/Hometown: Kell/Marietta, Georgia

Height/Weight: 6-3, 210

Rank: 4 stars, No. 86 in nation, No. 7 at position

NicQuayvion “Nuk” Simmons, DL

High school/Hometown: Carver High/Columbus, Georgia

Height/Weight: 6-3, 305

Rank: 3 stars, No. 2,280 in nation, No. 221 at position

Javonte Smith, CB

High school/Hometown: Jackson North Side/Jackson, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 170

Rank: 3 stars, No. 601 in nation, No. 46 at position

Jamyan Theodore, CB

High school/Hometown: Baylor School/Chattanooga, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 171

Rank: 3 stars, No. 896 in nation, No. 71 at position

Luke Thompson, S

High school/Hometown: Franklin/Franklin, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-1, 176

Rank: 3 stars, No. 629 in nation, No. 38 at position

TJ White, LB

High school/Hometown: Jackson Academy/Jackson, Mississippi

Height/Weight: 6-2, 230

Rank: 4 stars, No. 55 in nation, No. 4 at position

Luca Wolf, TE

High school/Hometown: NFL Academy/London, England

Height/Weight: 6-5, 246

Rank: 3 stars, No. 1,370 in nation, No. 81 at position

Joel Wyatt, DB

High school/Hometown: Oakland/Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Height/Weight: 6-4, 195

Rank: 4 stars, No. 65 in nation, No. 4 at position

Tennessee football recruiting targets

Tennessee may add a defensive lineman to its class, and there are a few possibilities.

Four-star edge rusher Jordan Carter decommitted from Texas A&M. He’s considering Auburn, Tennessee and Georgia Tech. The 6-3, 245-pounder is from Douglasville, Georgia. Carter is ranked the No. 23 edge rusher and No. 203 player overall in the 247Sports Composite.

Four-star defensive lineman Carter Gooden is committed to UCLA, which has undergone a coaching search. Gooden is keeping his options open, visiting Vanderbilt and Tennessee over the past two weekends. UCLA is hiring James Madison coach Bob Chesney, so Gooden must decide whether to keep him commitment to the Bruins.

Gooden is a 6-foot-4, 260-pounder from Marion, Massachusetts. He is ranked the No. 17 edge rusher and No. 147 player overall in the 247Sports Composite. He likely would play strongside defensive end for the Vols if they land him.

Three-star junior college transfer Jaylen Thomas is also considering Tennessee, along with Arkansas, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Kansas and Baylor among others. Thomas is a 6-3, 310-pound defensive tackle from Northwest Mississippi Community College.

Thomas, a Memphis native, is ranked the No. 13 junior college transfer in the 2026 class.

Tennessee football recruiting rankings

Entering the early signing period, Tennessee’s 2026 recruiting class ranked No. 8 nationally in the 247Sports Composite and fourth in the SEC. It trailed only Georgia, Alabama and Texas in the conference rankings.

If the Vols can hold these commitments, Heupel could have his highest ranked signing class as a head coach.

At Tennessee, his classes ranked No. 17 in 2022, No. 10 in 2023, No. 14 in 2024 and No. 11 in 2025 in 247Sports Composite. At UCF, his classes were ranked No. 62 in 2018, No. 60 in 2019, No. 75 in 2020 and No. 58 in 2021 before taking the Vols coaching job.

When is early signing day? Transfer portal and late signing day?

High school players who wish to sign during the early period must do so Dec. 3-5.

The late signing period for high school players begins Feb. 5.

Teams will wrap up the biggest portion of their signing class this week before adding players from the transfer portal, which opens Jan. 2.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Emailadam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

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