Cade Mays’ request for immediate eligibility denied; Tennessee is appealing

One of the most high-profile transfers of the college football offseason will have to wait to play for Tennessee — pending an appeal. Jeremy Pruitt announced on Monday after the team’s first practice that Cade Mays had his immediate eligibility request denied by the NCAA. He also said that they were in the process of appealing.

Mays is a former five-star prospect that played the last two seasons for the Georgia Bulldogs. He was initially committed to Tennessee, but decommitted through the firing of Butch Jones. Following his brother’s commitment to Tennessee two years later and the departure of Georgia offensive line coach Sam Pittman, Cade opted to come back home to Knoxville.

But it sounds like his Tennessee career will likely be put on hold.

This changes things for Tennessee up front, but the offensive line should still be a strength this fall. Trey Smith and Brandon Kennedy return for one more season, while five-star bookend tackles Wanya Morris and Darnell Wright are set for their sophomore seasons. Plugging in for Mays is likely to be K’Rojhn Calbert, though Tennessee did rotate quite a few players last season.

Cade’s fight isn’t over though — we’ll update you on the appeal as soon as information becomes available.