SI All-American watch list: 22 Tennessee Volunteer Commits and 14 key Vols targets named

Sports Illustrated has released its initial list of 1000 candidates for SI All-American Status, and these Tennessee verbal commits and targets are feat

Elite Edge Rusher Dylan Brooks out of Handley High School in Roanoke, Ala. headlines a group of 22 Tennessee verbal commits, along with 11 of the Vols' key targets in the 2021 recruiting cycle, who are candidates for the Sports Illustrated All-America Team of high school senior football players.

Brooks is a 6-5, 240 pounds edge rusher who committed to the Vols in April. He exhibits an explosive first step, requisite length, and elite upper body twitch to shake opposing blockers. Brooks is the marquee edge rusher that is custom fit for Jeremy Pruitt's defensive system.

Listed below is the full breakdown (Clickable Links) of Tennessee verbals and prime targets on the SI All-American watch list.

VERBAL COMMITS:

Offense

QB Kaidon Salter/6-2, 185/Cedar Hill, Texas

RB Cody Brown/ 6-0, 225/ Lilburn, Ga.

RB Jaylen Wright/ 5-11, 190/ Durham, N.C.

RB Elijah Howard/ 5-11, 185/ Chattanooga, Tenn.

WR Jordan Mosley/6-0, 190/Mobile, Ala.

WR Walker Merrill/ 6-1, 180/ Nashville, Tenn.

WR Julian Nixon/6-3, 230/ Roswell, Ga.

TE Hudson Wolfe/ 6-6, 245/ Savannah, Tenn.

TE Miles Campbell/ 6-3, 235/ Douglasville, Ga.

OT Colby Smith/ 6-7, 295/ West End, N.C.

ATH Trinity Bell/ 6-7, 260/ Albertville, Ala.

ATH Roc Taylor/ 6-2, 210/ Oxford, Ala.

ATH Kaemen Marley/6-2, 210/ Ramseur, N.C.

Defense

LB Terrence Lewis/6-1, 200/ Hollywood, Fla.

LB Dylan Brooks/ 6-5, 240/ Roanoke, Ala.

LB Aaron Willis/ 5-11, 210/ Baltimore, Md.

DT KaTron Evans/ 6-4, 320/ Baltimore, Md.

DE Darrell Jackson/ 6-5, 260/ Havana, Fla.

DE Isaac Washington/ 6-3, 270/ Pilot Mountain, N.C.

CB Jay Jones/6-0, 190/ Demopolis, Ala.

S Edwin White/ 6-0, 195/ Mobile, Ala.

S De'Shawn Rucker/ 5-10, 175, Tallahassee, Fla.

TOP TARGETS:

Offense

OT Amarius Mims/ 6-7, 315/ Cochran, Ga.

OT William Griffin/ 6-5, 320/ Nashville, Tenn.

OT Rod Orr/ 6-7, 295/ Gadsden, Ala.

OT Diego Pounds/ 6-6, 300/ Raleigh, N.C.

WR Deion Colzie/ 6-4, 190/ Athens, Ga.

Defense

LB Smael Mondon/ 6-3, 215/ Dallas, Ga.

DT Payton Page/ 6-4, 350/ Greensboro, N.C.

DT Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins/ 6-5, 300/ Gaffney, S.C.

DT Tywone Malone/6-3, 300/ Oradell, N.J.

CB Nyland Green/ 6-2, 180/ Covington, Ga.

CB Isaiah Johnson/ 6-2, 180/ Bluefield, W.V.

S Terrion Arnold/ 6-2, 190/ Tallahassee, Fla.

S Sirad Bryant/ 6-1, 190/ Cordele, Ga.

DE Khristian Zachary/ 6-3, 245/ Carrollton, Ga.

More than 1,000 student-athletes, representing every state in the country, are SI All-American candidates. Video highlights, scouting analyses and a breakdown of each player’s college verbal commitment and/or top college contenders can be found on their bio pages, broken down by state, at SIAllAmerican.com.

Over the coming weeks, SI will unveil its preseason top 10 for each of 14 position groups (kicking off with quarterbacks this week). SI will unveil its initial top 99 ranking, the SI99, on August 24.

The evaluation process will continue throughout the season “until the list of 1,000 contenders coalesces around just 25 young men who can say proudly they are the best of the best -- they are Sports Illustrated All-Americans,” said SI Director of Football Recruiting John Garcia, Jr.

The candidates will be narrowed to 250 in October and 99 in November, and will culminate with 25 first-team Sports Illustrated All-Americans saluted at SI’s annual Sportsperson of the Year banquet in New York in December.