Published Dec 18, 2017
DL Kingston Harris commits to Vols
Jesse Simonton  •  VolReport
Senior Writer
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@JesseReSimonton

During “a really great” official visit to Tennessee, Kingston Harris quietly committed to the Vols staff over the weekend.

The 3-star defensive lineman from IMG Academy planned to keep the news under wraps until Wednesday’s inaugural December signing day, but instead, Harris decided he wanted to make it official a few days early.

“The visit went really good. I got to see everything this time. The whole campus, the fans at the basketball game. It just made me feel like I was home,” Harris told VolQuest.

Harris picked Tennessee over more than 10 offers, with heavy interest from Maryland, Wake Forest and others.

He will sign in a ceremony at IMG Academy on Wednesday and enroll at Tennessee in January.

In the end, “the fit” at Tennessee was just right.

“With the new coaching staff, a lot of stuff is going to change,” Harris said. “I’m not exactly sure what’s going to go on but I’m excited.”

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Harris toured Tennessee with some IMG teammates this summer, but he got to see Neyland Stadium and “everything” the Vols had to offer during his OV this weekend. He liked the campus, the facilities, the people and the new staff.

“The vibe was really different,” he said. “It just made me feel like I was home.”

On the visit, Harris got to take in the atmosphere of the sellout crowd at the basketball game against No. 7 North Carolina, and he also got to reconnect with former UF defensive line coach Chris Rumph. Meeting his position coach Tracy Rocker for the first time in person was a bonus, too.

They talked about Harris’ future role on Tennessee’s defense as a versatile 6-foot-4, 265-pound lineman. During his senior season at IMG, Harris recorded 2.5 sacks and 4.0 tackles for loss.

“We talked about the defense a lot,” Harris said. “They said they were doing a 3-4 and 4-3 looks, so I’ll be playing just everywhere almost. Nose guard, nose tackle and end.(Rocker) is a a great coach. I felt like we’re going to get along really well and he’s going to teach me the game and we’ll go from there.”

Earlier Monday, Harris called new head coach Jeremy Pruitt to tell him the news ... again.

“He was excited an everything,” Harris said. “They knew when I was on my visit but I just had to do it.”