A recruiting story that should make Tennessee Vols fans feel really good moving forward
On Wednesday morning, the Tennessee Vols officially announced the signing of several 2023 recruits, including four-star offensive lineman Shamurad Umarov. Umarov, 6-foot-6/337 lbs from Alpharetta, GA, is ranked in 247Sports' composite rankings as the No. 26 offensive tackle in the nation and the No. 28 player in the state of Georgia. Landing Umarov was a big […]
On Wednesday morning, the Tennessee Vols officially announced the signing of several 2023 recruits, including four-star offensive lineman Shamurad Umarov.
Umarov, 6-foot-6/337 lbs from Alpharetta, GA, is ranked in 247Sports' composite rankings as the No. 26 offensive tackle in the nation and the No. 28 player in the state of Georgia.
Landing Umarov was a big get for the Vols. This is a player that Georgia badly wanted.
How badly?
Well, badly enough that Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart landed a helicopter on Umarov's high school field so he could recruit the talented offensive lineman.
My high school coach told me that Kirby (Smart) was coming here in a helicopter. I was like, “What? To see me?” It was just like a random morning. … I’m sitting in class and we hear it. I tell my friends, “Guess who is coming to see me?” They didn’t believe me and why would they believe that? So, we’re sitting there and we see it swirling and they’re like, “Oh my god. He was being serious.” The teacher’s teaching and everyone gets up like they don’t care and they start recording it like, “There’s a helicopter landing on our field! What is this?” Then, they see Kirby Smart walk out and they’re like who is he here for? Then, my name gets out there and we’re in the middle of switching classes and everyone is like, “Oh my god. He’s here for you!” It was pretty cool. — Sham Umarov, Class of 2023 Tennessee commit
Tennessee didn't get every player they wanted during the 2023 recruiting cycle. They missed on some guys. But going into Georgia and stealing an offensive lineman out of Kirby Smart's backyard is a pretty big deal. And it shows that Josh Heupel and his staff have the recruiting chops to go head-to-head with anyone in the country and win a recruiting battle.
Recruiting is only going to get better as the Vols continue to improve. Heupel is building a program that can sustain success — he isn't taking any shortcuts.
And that's why Tennessee fans should feel confident that the Vols' success in 2022 is only the beginning of something special.
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
