Josh Pate Says SEC Program 'Gets More Dangerous By The Day,' Has 'Sneakiest' NIL

The Tennessee Volunteers football program is coming off a massive recruiting weekend in Knoxville, hosting some of the top prospects in the country. By noon on Sunday, the Vols had two more additions to their 2025 class.

The first was four-star safety Lagonza Hayward on Saturday, followed by four-star tight end Da'Saahn Brame on Sunday. This brings the Vols to 20 commitments in the class, now ranked No. 7 in the country. They are also still in the running for more top prospects like four-star cornerback Onis Konanbanny and five-star-plus offensive tackle David Sanders Jr.

Late Kick's Josh Pate took notice of this, saying, "Tennessee gets more dangerous by the day."

Pate didn't leave it to that, though. He took to his show to explain what exactly makes the Vols so dangerous.

"Tennessee's the program to keep an eye on," Pate said. "If you want to know which program that's not currently at the head table of college football that will probably be the next one, given their current trajectory to join the head table of college football, it's Tennessee."

Pate went on to compliment the strategy of head coach Josh Heupel and his staff, noting their efforts in recruiting, evaluating, and offering prospects early to get a head start over other schools, and of course, NIL.

"Real recruiting in the NIL era is several layers deep," Pate said. "It is not just, 'I can get you this much money over this many years.' There is an entire plan that has to be laid out. ... Tennessee is one of the sneakiest NIL operations in college football right now. It's not just because they have money they can spend, it's because they understand it's not just the A part but B, C, D, E, F, G part as well."

Spyre Sports is the primary Vols collective. They were named by On3 as the "No. 1 most ambitious collective." They have known deals with well-known Tennessee athletes through The Volunteer Club, including this year's highly-touted starting quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, who was rumored to have signed an $8 million deal over three years.

In what will be Heupel's fourth season at Tennessee, he looks to recreate the magic his team had during the 2022 season when they ranked as high as No. 1 in the country at one point and finished at 11-2. Last year, they finished 9-4.

Tennessee is considered one of the dark horses to sneak into the new 12-team College Football Playoff field this season.

The Vols will begin their season against Chattanooga on Saturday, Aug. 31.

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