With Early Signing Day now less than two weeks away, Tennessee is hosting a pair of official visitors this weekend. One of the Vols’ top remaining targets in the 2024 class is back in Knoxville to take a closer look at Tennessee before making his final college decision, while a tight end in the transfer portal starting exploring his options by traveling to Knoxville.
The Vols are hosting Class of 2024 cornerback Jaren Sensabaugh, a former Vanderbilt commitment from Ensworth School in Nashville, Tenn., and Notre Dame tight end Holden Staes on official visits this weekend. Sensabaugh is among the targets Tennessee is hoping to add to its 2024 class, while Staes has emerged as a priority target for the Vols since adding his name to the transfer portal on Monday coming off his sophomore season with the Fighting Irish.
Tennessee linebacker Keenan Pili has received an extension of eligibility waiver from the NCAA and will return for a second season on Rocky Top in 2024, Pili announced on social media Friday afternoon.
The waiver was approved earlier in the day on Friday according to a Tennessee official, allowing Pili the opportunity to return for his seventh season of college football.
In a message on a graphic he shared on social media, Pili said:“Vol Nation, thank you for accepting me into the family here in Knoxville. Let’s run it back in 2024!”
Pili suffered an upper-body injury in Tennessee’s season-opening win over Virginia on Sept. 2 that proved to cost him the remainder of the season. The Vols landed Pili from BYU out of the transfer portal in December and was as an important addition to the middle of the defense for his leadership and experience, plus his ability on the field as a run defender in the box and out in space with his range and coverage skills.
Pili was a two-time team captain for the Cougars and totaled 190 tackles in 36 career games there. He started 24 times at BYU.
In final season at BYU in 2022, Pili made 62 tackles with 4.0 TFL’s, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery as a redshirt junior. His season was cut short the year prior in 2021 due to a season-ending injury. In the three games he was able to play, he recorded 31 tackles, 3.5 TFL’s, 1.5 sacks and a quarterback hurry. Pili recorded a career-high 17 tackles and a tackle for loss in a 24-16 win over Arizona.
Pili was a three-star recruit coming out of Timpview High School in Provo. The 6-foot-3, 237-pound linebacker was considered the No. 909 overall player in the 247Sports composite, as well as the No. 57 overall outside linebacker and No. 14 player in the state of Utah. He redshirted as a freshman and was a member on the scout team in 2016 before serving a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Orlando, Florida from 2017-19.
His brother, Trajan, played defensive line at BYU (2013, 2016-19), as did his his father’s cousin, Ifo Pili, in 1997-98, 2001-03.
In his first season following his mission, he played in 11 games in 2019 with one start against USC. Pili totaled 25 tackles, including 17 solo tackles, that year. He then had a breakout redshirt-sophomore season in 2020 when he finished second on the team in total tackles with 72. Pili started eight of 10 games on his way to earning Second Team All-Independent honors. He was also named the Boca Raton Bowl Defensive MVP after BYU’s 49-23 win over UCF.
Pili was a Semper Fi All-American as a safety coming out of high school. He was named to Salt Lake Tribune Coaches’ All-State Class 4A Second Team in 2015 where he helped Timpview to an 11-2 record en route to an appearance in the UHSAA 4A State Football Championship game. As a senior he recorded 70 tackles, one sack, three fumble recoveries and one blocked field goal.
The college football transfer portal continues to add serious talent at multiple positions and recently welcomed its best cornerback to date in Georgia’s Nyland Green, who leaped to the top of the defensive back rankings and into the top 5 overall with a 95 overall rating. More than 300 defensive backs have entered the portal this offseason, with nearly 200 of those players earning three-star grades or higher.
Green is the fifth transfer cornerback to garner a four-star rating this offseason, and we’ve decided to take a look at the top 10-rated corners to enter the portal thus far, providing intel on team interest and scheduled visits on several of the top prospects.
Prior to Green’s entry into the portal, former Clemson Tigers defender Toriano Pride sat atop the transfer cornerback rankings. He committed to Missouri on Wednesday, displaying how quickly things can move in the portal before it closes at the end of the day on Jan. 1, 2024.
Perkins announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal way back in September, leaving the Gators one game into the season. He saw limited action in the season-opening win over Utah, recording one tackle. He played all 13 games for Florida in 2022, totaling 14 tackles (12 solo), two tackles for loss and one interception while playing the STAR position. He allowed 14 receptions on 18 targets for 159 yards and one touchdown in coverage that season.
Turnage, a former four-star recruit, played in all 12 regular-season games for the Vols as a senior and totaled nine tackles and one pass breakup. He began the season as the No. 2 STAR behind Tamarion McDonald before shifting to cornerback, where he provided depth via rotational snaps in 11 games. His playing time on defense diminished as the season went on, as he played just 10 snaps in the final three games. He allowed 12 receptions on 22 targets for 248 yards and a touchdown, recording a Pro Football Focus coverage grade of 74.9.
Geiger entered the portal as a graduate transfer after recording nine total tackles across 11 games played this season. He suffered an injury in Kentucky’s loss at Georgia in Week 3 and missed the Missouri game the following Saturday. He returned against Tennessee but saw a major decrease in playing time. After logging at least 31 defensive snaps each of the first five weeks of the season before, Geiger never hit that mark the rest of the season, finishing with 15 against Louisville in the regular-season finale. He posted a 67.0 PFF grade, allowing three catches on four targets for 62 yards.
Chappell, a three-star recruit in Texas A&M’s talented 2022 class, started all 12 games for the Aggies as a junior this season and totaled 40 tackles and five pass breakups. The former SEC All-Freshman selection has experience at multiple positions in the secondary and allowed 20 receptions on 42 targets for 210 yards and a score this season. His physical style helped him limit opposing wide receivers to just 74 yards after the catch, one of the best marks in the SEC this season.
Bridges started all 13 games at corner during Dan Lanning’s inaugural season in 2022 and recorded a career-high 49 tackles, five pass breakups, three interceptions and a forced fumble across 704 snaps, the third-most on defense that season. He earned third-team All-Pac-12 recognition for his efforts. However, his role diminished this fall with Jahlil Florence and Khyree Jackson starting at corner. He played 205 snaps this season and finished with 16 tackles and three pass breakups.
Johnson ended the regular season among Georgia Tech’s highest-graded defenders with a 69.9 overall grade, according to PFF. He totaled 29 total tackles, two forced fumbles, one interception, one fumble recovery and three pass breakups. The redshirt junior allowed six receptions on 10 targets for 80 yards in 93 coverage snaps. He’s already received offers from Virginia, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt and Virginia Tech and has a visit scheduled with the Cavaliers this weekend, according to Wahoos247’s Jacquie Franciulli.
McCoy is one of many Beavers to enter the portal following Jonathan Smith’s departure for Michigan State. McCoy arrived at Oregon State last offseason as a three-star, ranked as the No. 91 cornerback in the nation. He quickly outplayed his recruiting pedigree, playing in all 12 games (four starts) and finishing with 16 tackles, seven pass breakups and two interceptions. He played the sixth-most coverage snaps on the team (265) and allowed 27 receptions on 47 targets for a team-high 420 yards and four touchdowns.
Nicknamed “The Blanket,” Lee recorded 42 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions, six pass breakups and a forced fumble as a sophomore this season. He started nine of 11 games at cornerback, and his PFF grade during the regular season was the highest of any defender on the Wildcats’ roster, registering a 76.3 rating on 453 total snaps. Lee revealed Friday that he has narrowed his recruitment to three schools: Louisville, Texas A&M and Washington.
Stout is one of the most sought-after prospects in the portal. He saw action in seven games this season and notched 28 tackles, three pass breakups and an interception. He also excelled at rushing the passer, racking up nine pressures and a sack. Transfer evaluator Clint Brewster said Stout can make an instant impact at the Power Five level.
“A two-time transfer who’s done his thing at North Texas (2021 season) and Western Kentucky (22-23), Upton Stout is probably ready to try his trade at the Power Five level,” Brewster said. “Stout had an interception and a forced fumble for the Hilltoppers this past season. Stout has excellent speed and can make up for and cover a lot of ground with his quickness. I love how attached he stays to receivers in-phase.”
Green entered the portal this week and leaped to the top of the cornerback rankings and No. 4 overall. A five-star recruit in the class of 2021, Green failed to crack the starting rotation over the past few seasons but was a constant contributor on special teams, where he recorded seven tackles in 2023. His natural ability makes him a breakout candidate in 2024, according to Brewster.
“His outstanding body language paired with the natural ability he has as a long and physical cover-corner makes Green our top available cornerback thus far,” Brewster said. “A good comparison from last cycle would be Khyree Jackson, a similarly talented player who was buried on the depth chart of an SEC blueblood but blossomed by jumping from Alabama to Oregon. Jackson was a first-team all-conference player for the Ducks in 2023. Can Green make a similar leap? We’re not going to bet against it.”
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