Southaven, Miss. native John Slaughter continues to feel the love from Tennessee and its coaches.
The three-star safety was offered last summer following an impressive camp day on The Hill and the coaching staff has made him a priority since. Slaughter attended Tennessee’s Junior Day in January to officially meet all the coaches and has been in regular contact with them ever since.
Last week, the head coach even dropped in for a FaceTime chat.
“It went really well. Coach Heupel was telling me how we need to get me back over there. Actually, we set up my official visit date,” the 2023 prospect said. “My relationship with them has been real god. They’ve been recruiting me for about a year.”
The official visit will come towards the end of July and that’s about the timeframe the 6-foot-2, 195-pound safety envisions for announcing his commitment.
“I plan on doing it really close to the season, but before the season. Maybe a week before,” the safety said of committing. “I want to experience a few more schools. Tennessee is definitely top-five, top-two for sure.”
Slaughter has around 10 offers right now but some others should be filing in pretty soon. Georgia has shown a lot of interest and has been up to see him. The defensive back also stopped by Alabama earlier this month and they’ve been showing more and more interest. Ole Miss is also high atop the list as well.
“I just needed to get up there and meet them in person because they offered me at a camp,” Slaughter said of January’s UT Junior Day. “I went to the Georgia game but I didn’t talk to any of the coaches because it was a night game and it was cold, but being back up there really helped a lot.
“Tennessee has a strong fan base for real. They are blowing up my twitter. They make me feel like home and somewhere I could feel comfortable.”
The three-star hopes to get back to Knoxville in the next few weeks to take in a spring practice, but next on the itinerary will be TCU as his 7-on-7 team will visit as a group following a tournament in Dallas on April 9.
“It’s been going well,” Slaughter said of the recruiting process. “It’s stressful sometimes with a lot of people talking to me. But it’s good.”
The athlete has been working hard in training this offseason and feels like his best football is in front of him.
“I’ve gotten quicker overall. I can’t wait to get to camps because I feel like I’ll dominate the ones I go to,” the prospect said. “I’ve gotten way faster and lighter on my feet. Then drills I do are quick-twitch. I’m actually pretty big-sized and some coaches are worried about changing directions and all that, so it’s those types of drills every day.”
In a recent interview with Volqest, Slaughter said Tennessee liked him because of his stature and ability to move.
“They love the way I move at 6-foot-2, 200 pounds,” Slaughter said in January. “They like that movement and how I flip my hips. They like how quick I am at the break. Another thing is my ball skills. That’s what most coaches love about me – my ball skills.”
Tennessee’s social media team has been all over Slaughter, sending him graphics just about every other week. This one likely won’t near a commitment any time soon, but the Vols are in great position.
Slaughter is rated as the 33rd-best safety in the class and owns a Rivals Rating of 5.6.
