Tennessee landed one of the top pure athletes in the 2020 class Wednesday, beating out UCLA and South Carolina for 3-star Len’Neth Whitehead.
The Athens Academy (Ga.) standout is a potential Olypmian shot putter and could play linebacker or tailback in college, with a preference to start his career on offense.
The 6-1, 230-pound thumper becomes the third tailback in Tennessee’s class, joining Jabari Small and Tee Hodge.
Here’s a closer look at what Whitehead’s commitment means…
SCOUTING REPORT
“A jumbo-athlete that can play on the Power 5 level on either side of the ball. He is a very good inside linebacker, but his heart is on offense at running back, so that is what he is expects to play for the Vols. As a back with the ball in his hands, he runs with power. He is a load to tackle, he breaks arm tackles on a regular basis and he has good balance.
Another strength at running back is his ball skills. He has flashed those on offense and defense throughout his high school career. Whitehead is not about speed, but he plays quick, he sees a hole and gets north-south.”
— Chad Simmons, Rivals Regional analyst
HOW WILL WHITEHEAD FIT IN WITH THE VOLS?
Originally recruited to play linebacker, Whitehead made it known late in the process that he wanted to play running back in college.
The Vols were already recruiting him as an athlete, so that decision worked well for Jeremy Pruitt & Co. Whitehead bonded well with Kevin Sherrer on the trail, but he will get coached up by David Johnson.
Whitehead instantly becomes one of the biggest ‘backs on the roster, along with fellow freshman Tee Hodge.
He runs with natural power, and his blue collar style suits Jim Chaney’s split-zone scheme.
Whitehead will undoubtably be a special teams stalwart in 2020, but his offensive role is tougher to outline as he enters a crowded backfield next season that isn’t slated to lose anyone (Ty Chandler, Eric Gray, Tim Jordan, Carlin Fils-Aime, Small and Hodge).
WHAT DOES WHITEHEAD’S COMMITMENT MEAN FOR TENNESSEE?
Tennessee won another battle over South Carolina for Whitehead, but more interestingly, is what happens in its running back room in the future.
The Vols now have seven ‘backs slated for the 2020 roster. Three will graduate after the season (Chandler, Jordan and CFA).
Tennessee will look to sign a blue-chipper in 2021 (targets include Will Shipley and Cody Brown ) but could the Vols end up adding more than one running back again next cycle since Hodge or Whitehead or perhaps even Small, could end up on defense in the future?
Another potential avenue is if Tennessee opts to keep 2021 commit Elijah Howard on offense rather than having the Baylor School star play corner in college.
We’ll see.
