Tennessee will open its SEC schedule on September 21st against a new rival in Oklahoma, and the Volunteers will see one of their defensive linemen on the sidelines for that game who was supposed to enter the transfer portal.
On Monday, a report emerged that defensive lineman Jayson Jenkins would enter the spring transfer portal and look for a new home to play college football.
Jenkins was a three-star recruit from the class of 2022 and played in six games last season, recording only four tackles.
It seemed like Jenkins was out the door and would not return to Knoxville, but things changed. Twenty-four hours after the report came out, he entered the portal.
According to 247sports.com, Jayson Jenkins is planning not to enter the NCAA transfer portal. According to Ryan Callahan from 247sport.com, “Jenkins never officially submitted paperwork to add his name to the transfer portal before deciding to return to Tennessee.
Less than 24 hours later, Tennessee defensive lineman Jayson Jenkins is now not planning to enter the NCAA transfer portal. @247SportsPortal@RyanCallahan247 has the story.
➡️ https://t.co/pT5kzdNm89 #Vols
— Patrick Brown (@pbrown247) April 23, 2024
It might not seem significant that a player who only recovered four tackles last season is not leaving the program, but the more depth you can keep along your defensive line, the better.
The Volunteers just saw their leading tackler linebacker, Elijah Herring, enter the portal last week. They are already down a player on the defensive side of the ball and couldn’t afford to lose another one.
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