One of the top names left in the portal.
It’s been a wild couple of weeks for the Tennessee wide receiver room. Not only will the Volunteers lose senior starters Bru McCoy and Dont’e Thornton, but six more have opted to hit the transfer portal. That leaves the Volunteers with just two scholarship players at the position, pending a final decision from former five-star prospect Mike Matthews.
Tennessee will welcome three freshmen receivers in their 2025 class, but that’s hardly enough to fill out a depth chart. There’s a clear need to surround quarterback Nico Iamaleava with playmakers too, following a less than stellar showing in 2024 from Kelsey Pope’s receiver group.
The transfer portal is rocking and rolling, and hundreds of top prospects are already off the board. That makes Tennessee’s position that much tougher, but there is a big fish still out there — USC transfer Zachariah Branch.
According to a report from On3, Tennessee is going “all-in” to land a visit for the touted receiver.
Zachariah Branch and his brother Zion have yet to commit as the dead period comes to a close. Sources tell On3 that Tennessee is going all-in to land a visit, using a recruiting pitch involving receiver Bru McCoy. Nico Iamaleava’s Dad is also making a push, sources told On3. The brothers previously visited Arizona State and Georgia.
Zachariah’s brother Zion is a three-star safety transfer, per On3. Zion was a former four-star prospect coming out of high school.
Zachariah caught 47 passes for 503 yards during the 2024 season. The 5-10, 172 pound receiver ranks 28th overall in On3’s transfer portal rankings. Branch was a five-star prospect in the class of 2023, coming out of Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas. He would have two seasons of eligibility remaining and could fill the shoes of the departing Squirrel White in Tennessee’s offense.
Branch has already taken visits to Arizona State and Georgia.
As things stand right this second, Tennessee’s depth chart at receiver reads as follows — Chris Brazzell and Braylon Staley. The Volunteers will likely be heavily involved with several different portal receivers over the next several days and weeks. Though the December 28th deadline has passed, those already in the portal can still pick their new schools during this time.
Let’s see if Tennessee can get Branch on campus.