Tennessee football gets good news in the middle of an otherwise tough sports weekend for the Vols

It hasn't been a great sports weekend for the Tennessee Vols. Tennessee baseball dropped their first two games of the season — the second loss coming after the Vols held a 3-1 lead over Grand Canyon (UT fell 4-3 on Saturday night in Arizona). Vols hoops also had a rough Saturday, losing 66-54 to the […]

Zach Ragan Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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It hasn't been a great sports weekend for the Tennessee Vols.

Tennessee baseball dropped their first two games of the season — the second loss coming after the Vols held a 3-1 lead over Grand Canyon (UT fell 4-3 on Saturday night in Arizona).

Vols hoops also had a rough Saturday, losing 66-54 to the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington.

While the baseball team and the basketball team had a tough weekend, Tennessee football managed to get some good news.

2024 three-star athlete Marcus Goree Jr announced his commitment to the Vols on Saturday.

Goree, 6-foot-1/170 lbs from Cleveland, TN (Bradley Central), is rated in 247Sports' composite rankings as the No. 9 player in the state of Tennessee and the No. 60 athlete in the nation.

The Tennessee native committed to the Vols over offers from Auburn, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, and Virginia Tech, among several others.

Goree is expected to be a defensive back at the next level.

https://www.twitter.com/marcusgoree_2/status/1627141416617926656

Here's the scouting report on Goree from 247Sports national recruiting analyst Cooper Petagna.

From 247Sports:

Long fluid athlete that’s positioned primarily at the strong safety position and excels closer to the line of scrimmage. Exhibits good lateral range and closing speed. Shows the ability to play sideline to sideline. A reactionary defender that plays with very little wasted motion and shows the ability to key and diagnose in the short to intermediate part of the field. Strong run support defender. Physical tackler that will strike you at the point of attack. Possesses situational pass rush ability from the second level.

Limited sample size as a pass defender. Flashes some ability to play the deep part of the field but typically is not asked to play man-to-man as a slot defender. Although evidence is limited, appears to possess the athletic ability to cover possession receivers and tight ends over the slot.

One notable thing that Petagna mentions is that Goree appears to be able to cover possession receivers and tight ends out of the slot. That's been a weakness for Tennessee in recent years.

The Vols now have four players committed to their 2024 recruiting class, which is currently ranked No. 15 in the nation.

Featured image via Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK