After seeing both offensive line coach Will Friend and offensive coordinator Jim Chaney stop by Knoxville Catholic in recent weeks, offensive lineman Cooper Mays decided to return the favor. He dropped in on Friend and Chaney Saturday as Tennessee hosted it's second junior day of January.

"The visit was very very good," Mays said. "I had the chance to sit down and talk with Coach Pruitt, coach Friend and coach Chaney. It was just a fun visit. I got the chance to sit down and talk with each of them separately."

Mays got talk with Jeremy Pruitt privately for about 30 minutes. He followed that up with an hour conversation with Chaney and then multiple hours with Friend. He also got to speak with athletic director Phillip Fulmer, who coached his father Kevin in the early 90s. The message was simple and that's Cooper is a priority.

"Coach Friend feels like I can be a great help to them," Mays said. "They can see me being a captain and they want me really bad. Coach Friend thinks I can be the top center in the nation. Coach Chaney wants me there and that I'm a big priority."

Mays had a great year at Catholic on both sides of the ball, which is something Pruitt left open as a possibility.

"Coach Pruitt told me I could play anything from offense to defense," Mays said. "Anything I wanted to play because he said I'm just a good football player. He told me they need more players like me."

And the fact that Tennessee has made him a top priority in-state for 2020 has left quite the impression on Mays.

"It matters a lot," Mays said. "Anytime coaches make you feel that you are a priority it's a big deal. Everyone preaches to go to a place that you are celebrated and not tolerated. If they are celebrating you then it makes you feel good. It's a big part of it."

Teammates Tyler Baron, Tommy Winton and Chancellor Bright joined Mays on campus. That's who he spent his time with when he wasn't with coaches. He hears a lot from both Georgia and Florida and has double digit offers. In a perfect scenario, he would love to commit before his senior season, but that's by no means set in stone.

"Maybe right before my senior year," Mays said. "I've not really thought about a date or anything. I"m not going to have an announcement. I'm going to commit when it feels right. Probably in the privacy of the coaches I want to commit to and announce it later."

Rivals.com ranks Mays as a 3-star offensive lineman in the class of 2020.