Where the Lady Vols fall in ESPN's early top 25 rankings
The Lady Vols, under the guidance of head coach Kellie Harper, are coming off one of their best seasons in recent memory. Tennessee finished the 2021-22 season ranked No. 18 in the AP Top 25. They were No. 4 in the AP Top 25 at one point last season — the Lady Vols' highest ranking […]
The Lady Vols, under the guidance of head coach Kellie Harper, are coming off one of their best seasons in recent memory.
Tennessee finished the 2021-22 season ranked No. 18 in the AP Top 25. They were No. 4 in the AP Top 25 at one point last season — the Lady Vols' highest ranking since the 2015 season.
While the season didn't finish the way Harper wanted — Tennessee lost to Louisville in the Sweet 16 — the program is clearly on the right track.
The Lady Vols haven't been to a Final Four since 2008. Harper is hoping to change that in 2022-23. And she should have a shot at doing just that — thanks to a strong transfer portal haul that gives Tennessee one of the best rosters in the nation.
As a result of that transfer portal haul, plus the recruits coming into the program, ESPN has the Lady Vols ranked No. 4 in their early top 25 rankings.
Rae Burrell is be gone, but the Lady Vols arguably won the transfer portal sweepstakes with a staked haul of Rickea Jackson (Mississippi State), Jillian Hollingshead (Georgia), Jasmine Powell (Minnesota) and Jasmine Franklin (Missouri State). Pair that group — plus incoming freshman Justine Pissott, the No. 11-ranked recruit — with Jordan Horston and Tamari Key, and Tennessee has the talent to build upon last season's promising start, in which the program achieved its best ranking in the Associated Press poll (No. 4) since the first weeks of 2015.
Part of the reason the Lady Vols are finding success right now is because of the culture that Harper has built. She recently told 247Sports that she loves the vibe of her team right now.
“I was really excited about our start (last season), really excited about the fact that we got back to the Sweet 16, there’s no doubt about that,” said Harper. “But honestly the most important thing in my opinion was the how. It was how we did it. And it was the vibe; it was the feel; it was the competitiveness; it was the love; it was the character; it was the fight, the grit. I love the how."
Harper has the Lady Vols trending in the right direction. It would be poetic if one of Pat Summitt's best players is the coach who finally gets the program back to a championship level.
Featured image via David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
