It was hard for Trinity Bell to envision himself as a college student a few years ago.
The Albertville, Ala. native was a basketball player with only a few looks. Fast forward two years later and Bell has his picks to choose from in two sports.
Ultimately, the three-star chose to play football for the Volunteers and he’ll be signing with Tennessee on December 16.
“My recruiting journey was very unexpected,” Bell told Volquest. “I never thought I’d go to college unless I was playing a sport. It’s truly been a blessing.”
The 2021 Vols commit is raw and still relatively new to the sport as 2019 was his first season playing football since his childhood days. Before he even took a snap, Bell garnered a couple of Power 5 offers based on his 6-foot-8, 260-pound frame.
“I feel like I’ve come a long way, but I still will have a lot to learn once I get to college,” Bell said. “I’d say my strongest suit right now is route running and I’ve learned how to block at both the line of scrimmage and out wide. I think I can really grow in that regard once I slow down and learn the proper techniques.”
Bell played both tight end and wide receiver for Albertville High over the past two seasons.
“I talk with the Tennessee coaching staff about once a week – usually every Sunday night,” Bell said. “The calls have been exciting as they say they can’t wait to get me there. I think the coaches recognized my work ethic when they originally gave me a shot.
“We are all good. I’m planning on signing the first day of the early signing period.”
Bell won’t be an early enrollee, however, as the senior plans to complete his final basketball season this winter. The athlete may potentially have the opportunity to play both sports in Knoxville.
“I talked with coach [Rick] Barnes and he said they wanted me to play both if I could. They said I didn’t have to, but it’s an option for me,” Bell said. “I did give some thought to playing basketball in college. But I know I won’t be able to enroll early because my season will go until at least mid-February.”
The dual-sport athlete also has options on the gridiron. Tennessee views Bell as a tight end and has position coach Joe Osovet handling his recruitment. There’s been talk of the prospect also working on the defensive line as well, but it appears he’ll start off on offense alongside fellow tight end commits Hudson Wolfe and Miles Campbell.
Bell is getting to know those two, as well as others in the meantime via a group chat.
“I’ve been talking to a lot of them the past few weeks,” Bell said. “Guys like Kaidon Salter, Dylan Brooks and more. There’s probably about 15 of us in that group chat. I don’t even have all the numbers saved right now.”
From being widely unknown to a three-star prospect committed to a program in the Southeastern Conference, Bell’s journey has been a good one. It’s not over but it will take its next steps in the next few weeks when he puts pen to paper.
“It’s still kind of scary to think about,” Bell looked ahead. “But it’s scary-exciting. I’m really excited to get things started.”
