The madness of the transfer portal has come and gone and Tennessee’s 2026 football roster is largely set. The staff worked hard to refresh the entire defensive roster, getting things set for Jim Knowles to take over later on this fall. Tennessee also chased a couple of big fish at the quarterback position, but ultimately ended up falling short.
Did they do enough? Does this roster still have needs? Let’s give a grade on their efforts, position by position.
Quarterback — C
Honestly, this is a tough spot
to grade currently with the status of Joey Aguilar still up in the air until Friday. However, what we do know is that Tennessee went after Sam Leavitt pretty hard, but ultimately got outbid by Lane Kiffin and LSU. Tennessee was also in the mix for Ty Simpson, who never actually entered the transfer portal, but ended up turning pro instead. Two big swings and two misses — and the Volunteers ended up just grabbing a depth piece in Ryan Staub.
If Aguilar is cleared to come back for 2026, all is forgotten. If he’s not, all of Josh Heupel’s eggs are in the basket of youngsters George MacIntyre and Faizon Brandon. It’s clear Heupel wanted a veteran to bridge this gap. We’ll see if he gets that with Aguilar’s ruling on Friday.
Running Back — B
Tennessee wandered down several roads here looking for a depth piece, finally finding Javin Gordon from Tulane. Gordon could end up being a long-term addition, just coming off of his freshman season. The 5-10, 200 pound back ran for over 500 yards last season and should enter the Tennessee rotation immediately.
Wide Receiver — No grade
Tennessee will roll with what they have here, and understandably so.
Tight End — B
Jack Van Doreslaer hit the exits in the middle of the portal cycle, leaving Tennessee with a pretty underrated need to fill. Van Dorselaer’s blocking role will now go to Trent Thomas, who Tennessee added with Florida coming on strong. Thomas comes from South Alabama, where he was used in that exact role. Nothing too flashy here, but a need filled.
Offensive Line — B+
Tennessee will bring back four of five starters on the offensive line next season, but had to replace the outgoing Lance Heard. With David Sanders largely expected to kick over to the left side, Tennessee added a potential solution on the right side with Ory Williams from LSU. Glen Elarbee added competitive depth with West Virginia guard Donovan Haslam. Tennessee didn’t need much here and did a solid job adding numbers.
Defensive Tackle — C
Tennessee made a really nice addition with Xavier Gilliam, who should see big playing time immediately. Gilliam is another high-upside, multi-year transfer that already has playing experience. The problem here is that Gilliam was the only addition at the position, despite the staff really trying to add more. Tennessee had a chance to build out depth here with several veterans exiting, but they were unable to close on a few different options that they got on campus for visits.
EDGE — A+
Jordan Ross and Caleb Herring hit the transfer portal, leaving Tennessee with a massive need at the LEO spot. With the room virtually empty, the staff swung big — and connected. Chaz Coleman, a former five-star prospect, follows Knowles to Knoxville and immediately becomes one of the most feared pass rushers in the conference. The 6-4, 246 pound edge rusher was a massive get for the staff, picking Tennessee over LSU.
Tennessee added depth with Tulane edge rusher Jordan Norman, who put up six sacks last season. Depth may be a concern here, but adding elite talent at the top of the depth chart deserves the A+ grade.
Linebacker — A+
Tennessee added Penn State linebacker Amaree Campbell because they thought Arion Carter was headed to the NFL. As it turns out, Carter will come back to play alongside of Campbell. So Jim Knowles gets his linebacker in the middle of his defense, along with a program leader in Carter on top of that. Win-win for everyone. Tennessee’s linebacker room is DEEP and offers plenty of versatility.
Cornerback — B–
The Volunteers lost Rickey Gibson to the transfer portal to go on top of losing Jermod McCoy and Colton Hood to the NFL Draft. Tennessee addressed that by adding Auburn starter Kayin Lee, who will slide into the lineup alongside of Ty Redmond. The staff chased some more competitive depth late in the portal cycle, but couldn’t quite close on some higher ranked names.
Tennessee rounds out the room with Tevis Metcalf (Michigan) and Isaiah Hardge (Colorado). The pecking order behind the top two will be interesting to sort out, starting in the spring.
Safety — A+
Tennessee’s biggest need coming into the portal cycle was addressed — and then some. Familiarity was added with Penn State safety Dejaun Lane, while Qua Moss, TJ Metcalf and DJ Burks round out the group. Edrees Farooq remains on the roster. Knowles will be able to mix and match this group in his year one defense in Knoxville.
Specialists — A+
It was simply time to move on from Max Gilbert, which Tennessee did. The staff went out and added one of the best young kickers in the country to replace him, grabbing Cooper Ranvier from Louisville. Ranvier was 21/25 during his redshirt freshman season with the Cardinals. He’ll have three seasons left to play, too.
Tennessee also added Idaho State receiver Ian Duarte, who is expected to compete for the return gig. The Volunteers also grabbed long snapper Blake Howard from Eastern Kentucky.
