Tennessee gets good news on top recruit J.J. Peterson
Jeremy Pruitt’s full attention is aimed toward getting Tennessee a win over West Virginia on Saturday, but help is on the way for the Volunteers next week.
Tennessee will need to drastically upgrade its talent level over the next few seasons if it wants to get back in contention for SEC titles. Recruits like J.J. Peterson are the sort of athletes Jeremy Pruitt needs to be successful. Fortunately, the Volunteers have received good news about the talented linebacker.
The highly touted recruit has been in limbo recently because of his need to complete one summer course to officially gain eligibility to play this season. Per ESPN, Peterson has now received confirmation from the NCAA that he will be eligible this season. Pruitt and Tennessee officials were confident Peterson would ultimately be declared eligible, but it’s still a relief to have the matter officially behind the player and the program.
He won’t be cleared in time to help Tennessee knock off West Virginia on Saturday, but he is expected to be a full participant for the program beginning on Monday. That’s great news for a defense that’s short on difference makers.
It’s reasonable to expect Peterson to get into the mix for meaningful playing time pretty quickly. The return of Darrin Kirkland Jr.’s decision to return to Tennessee for his senior season solidified Pruitt’s corps of linebackers, but there are still questions about the starters on the outside. Peterson’s status as the consensus No. 1 OLB in his class means he will immediately become Pruitt’s most talented option at the position.
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Peterson isn’t the sort of player that’s going to instantly turn Tennessee from pretender to contender in the SEC, but he is a step in the right direction for Pruitt and the new Volunteers coaching staff. He has the ability to help forge a strong foundation for the Tennessee defense to build on for the future.