12/1/2021 football Edit

UT priority target Jourdan Thomas cuts ties with Mississippi State

Eric Cain • VolReport

Staff

I'm Eric, but you may know me as Cainer on the radio. Writing was my first passion and I'm thrilled to be a part of the team. Feel free to reach out anytime and be sure to follow my work on twitter.

A longtime priority target for Tennessee in the defensive backfield hit the open market Wednesday afternoon when three-star safety Jourdan Thomas of Montgomery Catholic decommitted from Mississippi State.

“I just felt in my heart that I needed to step back and consider all of my options,” Thomas told Volquest of the move. “It’s still all love for Mississippi State. I still love all the coaches there. I’ve built bonds with those guys over there. So, there’s no love-loss.”

The 6-foot-2, 190-pound athlete had been committed to Mike Leach’s staff since April of this year. The decision comes a day after Tennessee visited with Thomas at school on Tuesday.

Josh Heupel, Tim Banks and Willie Martinez were the ones on hand.

“It went great. We talked for a while and then I showed them around my school,” the safety said. “It was really just them spending valuable time with me. They’ve already made their message clear to me that I’m a top-priority.

“They didn’t really have to say too much. It was really them just coming down here to see me.”

Despite the Bulldog pledge, Tennessee has stayed after the Montgomery, Ala. native all year long. Thomas made his first trip up to Knoxville about eight months ago before returning for a game day visit in October when Tennessee defeated South Carolina.

The change of heart for the three-star couldn’t come at a better time for the Vols as Thomas is scheduled to officially visit Tennessee this weekend.

“It will be good to just see everything again. I’ve already built great relationships with the coaching staff and I’ve been to the facility multiple times,” the prospect said. “Really, it’s just going back to see it one last time before I make a decision.”

Tennessee appears to be the clear front-runner at current standing. Outside of Mississippi State, Heupel and the Vols have been the most involved while Auburn has kept tabs as well.

The safety is tabbed as the 34th player in Alabama for the 2022 class and boasts over 20 offers – several from the power 5 landscape.

With Thomas extremely high on the radar at the prep level, the Vols continue their pursuit of JUCO defensive backs Marquise Gilbert, Desmond Williams and Keionte Scott. Tennessee will also continue to swing for Michigan commit Kody Jones and is involved with Jeremiah Crawford as well.