2020 DL Rylie Mills recaps Tennessee visit, convo with Pruitt

Last weekend with his parents, 2020 Lake Forest (Ill.) defensive lineman Rylie Mills made the eight-hour drive to Knoxville to checkout Tennessee.

It was Mills’ inaugural trip to a SEC campus, and the 6-foot-5, 257-pound lineman left town with an offer from head coach Jeremy Pruitt.

“Tennessee was awesome. I had a great time,” Mills told VolQuest.

“Getting to meet all the coaches, getting a feel for the atmosphere and the school was really fun. Seeing the weight room, how they’re working the players was really eye-opening for me.”

Mills already holds scholarships from Notre Dame, Northwestern, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa and Vandy, but he’s only visited a handful of colleges as his recruitment is just getting started.

Tennessee’s staff reached out to the sophomore a couple weeks ago, pushing for an early visit. After he saw Minnesota, Mills travelled down to Knoxville and had no expectations he would leave with an offer.

“They told me they wanted to see me in person, and then once I got down here for the summer camp that I would get an offer then,” he explained.

“So I was just expecting to come down here and meet the coaches, visit the school and have them checkout my size. I didn’t expect to get an offer when I talked (with) coach (Pruitt). It took me by surprise. But it was a good surprise.”

Last fall, Mills recorded four sacks and 12 tackles for loss playing multiple spots on Lake Forest’s defensive line. He said most schools are recruiting him as a future 3-technique tackle, but Tennessee likes his versatility and upside as a pass rusher at several spots.

“Coach Pruitt told me they see me as a pro-style player,” Mills said. “A guy who can play across the line. They think I play an inside tackle position on some downs, but with size and speed and pass rush ability, using my hands, he sees me as a five (technique) or wide end as well.”

While Mills noted that his fundamentals and technique still need refining and consistency, schools are salivating over his potential as an explosive defensive lineman. Mills said he “still has a lot of room to grow,” and that colleges “notice my quickness and I’m good with my hands and pass rush. I can take on double-teams and get through blocks.”

This summer, Mills plans to camp at several SEC schools after doing the same in B10 country last year. The recruiting process is in its infancy stages, but Mills hopes to come back to Tennessee in the fall to catch a game.

“I’m still kind of getting a feel for the visits and finding something at each school that makes them unique. Maybe it’s actual physical or something community wise with the town or city. At Tennessee, their stadium was really mind-blowing. Seeing that huge stadium, the size and the scope was really impressive,” he said.

“I’d for sure to love to get down there for a game this fall. I want to see the gameday atmosphere, see what it’s like.”