Four-Star WR Braylon Staley Commits To Tennessee Over Clemson, Miami

2024 four-star wide receiver Braylon Staley has committed to the Tennessee Volunteers over Clemson, Miami, and North Carolina.

Author:
Evan Crowell
Publish date:
Jun 30, 2023 4:02 PM EDT

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Tennessee Volunteers

The Tennessee Volunteers entered Friday with one pass catcher in the 2024 class when they hope to take six. That number increased as the day progressed as four-star wide receiver Braylon Staley (Aiken, S.C.) committed to Tennessee over Clemson, Miami, and North Carolina. Staley was a Clemson lean for months before the Vols gave him something to think about on his official visit.

Head coach Josh Heupel and wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope sold Staley on the vision of him being one of their top targets on the outside. Tennessee's offense is famous for attacking defenses outside the numbers and giving their top receivers multiple contested catch opportunities per game. Staley excels in traffic, high-pointing the football out of the air and contorting his body to out-leverage his matchup. Tennessee certainly isn't done on the pass catcher front, but their first wideout in the class is a good one.

Prospect: Braylon Staley

Projected Position: Z-receiver

Vitals: 6-1 and 185 pounds

School: Aiken High School (Aiken, S.C.)

Frame: Staley fits the prototype of a Tennessee wide receiver. The Vols don't often recruit oversized pass catchers, and they don't want slender wideouts unless they have blazing speed. Staley blends the two sides, creating a nice middle ground. He could put on around ten pounds in college if he desires, but his current size projects enough to step on an SEC field relatively soon.

Athleticism: Elite athletic background that shows downfield. Staley is a South Carolina 4A state champion in the 200-meter dash and the triple jump. He's clocked an 11.12-second 100-yard dash and has the ankle flexion to make sharp cuts on in-breaking routes. What separates Staley is his leaping ability; no one will get to a ball in the air faster than him, which serves him well in the red zone.

Instincts: Excels at tracking the football. Staley rarely mislocates a ball's flight path and generally extends for the catch at the correct time. While it's difficult to create separation in the red zone, Staley does a nice job of positioning his body to force his man into inside leverage before abruptly cutting to the corner. From there, he does the rest.

Polish: Creating separation will be a major focus when Staley gets on campus. While he makes difficult catches routine, quarterbacks won't consistently target covered receivers in the SEC in hopes of them making a play - the defensive back play is too good. However, Staley is a strong pickup from a physical, athletic, and willingness perspective.

Bottom Line: Tennessee lands its first wide receiver in the 2024 class, and he's exactly what they recruit. Pope will spend the next few years helping Staley develop a nuanced route-running pattern specific to Tennessee's system, and Staley should get a crack at making the rotation after he accomplishes that.

Tennessee 2024 Recruiting Class

Jake Merklinger, QB
Peyton Lewis, RB
Braylon Staley, WR
Jonathan Echols, TE
Gage Ginther, OL
Jesse Perry, OG
Max Anderson, OG
Kellen Lindstrom, DL
Carson Gentle, DL
Jeremias Heard, DL
Jordan Burns, ILB
Kaleb Beasley, CB
Boo Carter, S
Edrees Farooq, S
Marcus Goree, S

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