Tennessee is the early leader for a 2027 4-star recruit that’s getting overlooked because of a 2027 5-star recruit
The Tennessee Vols are in the mix for some of the top 2027 running backs in the nation.
The Tennessee Vols are the “early leader” for a 2027 four-star recruit that’s being overlooked a bit.
On3’s Steve Wiltfong pointed out on Friday that Tennessee is the early leader for 2027 four-star running back Andrew Beard.
“The culture and play style of Tennessee is what really catches my eye at first glance,” said Beard to On3 of his interest in the Vols. “Coach (Josh) Heupel is an offensive coach that loves to run the ball so getting to play in an offense that caters to your strengths is just something you’re always looking for.”
Beard, 5-foot-9/197 pounds from Bogart, GA, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 4 running back in the nation and the No. 63 overall player in the 2027 recruiting class.
Andrew Beard isn’t Tennessee’s top running back target
The reason Beard is being overlooked — at least when it comes to Tennessee — is because he isn’t the Vols’ top running back target.
Tennessee’s top priority in the 2027 recruiting class is five-star running back David Gabriel Georges.
Georgia and Ohio State are also in the mix for Gabriel Georges.
There’s certainly no guarantee that Tennessee will land Gabriel Georges, but that doesn’t mean that Beard is a backup plan for the Volunteers.
Tennessee could actually take two running backs during the 2027 recruiting cycle.
“They’ll probably take two backs out of the high school ranks in this next class,” said VolQuest’s Austin Price this week on 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will.
Price noted in December that Gabriel Georges prefers to share the workload at the next level.
“He’s an instant impact type player,” said Price. “He really is. And I will say this — he’s big on having someone to help share the load. He does not want to be a guy who carries it 30 times. He wants to be a guy who carries it 18 times and makes the 18 (carries) count. So, I think he wants other backs around him. He definitely wants to be the guy, he just wants to be the guy in moderation.
“If you get into the right kind of game, sure he’s gonna carry it 30 times and he isn’t going to complain. But I think he wants help around him. He doesn’t want it to be him every game, all game. And that’s kind of been Tennessee’s thought process. Except for the Dylan Sampson year, they’ve done a nice job of balancing and sharing carries.”
If the Vols miss on Gabriel Georges, they’ll likely put the full court press on Beard. But even if Tennessee lands Gabriel Georges, they could still make a strong push for Beard, which would give the Vols a lethal one-two punch at running back.
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