3-star athlete Roc Taylor commits to Tennessee

Tennessee capped off a quiet sports week with an exciting commitment Friday afternoon. 3-star tight end/wide receiver Roc Taylor announced on Twitter that he had committed to the Volunteers.

Taylor is a high 3-star athlete hailing from Oxford, Alabama. He’s currently tagged as the 447th overall recruit in the nation and 17th ranked tight end. He’s also a top-20 player in Alabama.

The commitment is a bit out of left field—mainly due to how Taylor has conducted his recruitment. He’s been quietly visiting schools around the country, including Florida State, Auburn, and Tennessee. The Volunteers offered him a scholarship on November 30th, but he didn’t make his way to Knoxville until March 7th for the Junior Day. Evidently it was a good enough experience that he decided to commit about a month later.

Taylor is listed as an athlete, since he plays wide receiver in high school at 6-foot-3 and 212 pounds. He’s projected at tight end thanks to his large frame and lack of elite speed. He has plenty of room to fill out and hasn’t reached his athletic peak yet. While that might make him a bit of a project, it needs to be noted that Taylor has gotten praise for his competitiveness when it comes to blocking and battling for the ball. Those are two traits that you don’t necessarily want to “teach” your tight ends to do.

His production in the high school ranks should excite fans. According to this article, Taylor caught 71 receptions for 1,316 yards and 17 touchdowns last season. He gained considerable attention around the southeast thanks to his breakout year, and he’ll be a prime candidate for a rankings bump after his senior season.

Taylor is the 10th commit of the 2021 class for Tennessee. He’s the third highest ranked recruit in Tennessee’s class at the moment. The Volunteers rank 11th nationally and 3rd in the SEC for class rankings.