The Tennessee Vols’ biggest obstacle to contending for college football titles is demonstrated by NFL Draft history.
One of the tenets of college football recruiting is keeping your best players at home. That runs true for the and every other program in America.
However, sometimes what’s “at home” is a major advantage for some programs over others. Having a massive base of top-tier talent makes things a lot easier for programs located within their borders. And it can be a challenge for those that don’t.
According to a recent report from MaxPreps, 53 players from the state of Tennessee have gone on to be drafted over the last 10 years. That number falls. below places like Mississippi, South Carolina
, Virginia, Maryland, and New Jersey.
In the meantime, 211 former Peach State standouts have heard their names called in the draft over the last ten years, as Georgia is creating a dynasty on a foundation of homegrown talent in the state.
That being said, there is not a guarantee that a program will be successful. After all, not much has changed in the college programs in Florida and California over that time.
However, it does highlight the difficulties Josh Heupel will have when trying to elevate Tennessee from a respectable level to one that is a perennial challenger for the playoffs. The secret is to be able to retain the best in the state house. He’s working with athletes like Brentwood Academy’s 2025 quarterback. Ensworth DL Ethan, and George MacIntyreIn his first three years in office, Heupel has performed admirably when it comes to recruiting beyond the state. It seems obvious that he will need to keep doing that if Tennessee is to become a playoff club, which is its desired outcome every season.
