Why Tennessee football, Josh Heupel place importance on recruiting North Carolina

North Carolina is a focal point for Tennessee football recruiting, Vols coach Josh Heupel said Tuesday.

"It is a border state," Heupel said before Tennessee begins preseason practices Wednesday. "For us, we believe and look at it and view it as part of our footprint. We are intentional in how we recruit that state."

Heupel's comments come in the midst of Tennessee's intense pursuit of five-star offensive tackle David Sanders Jr., who plays at Providence Day School in Charlotte. Heupel was not asked about Sanders nor did he comment specifically on the No. 2 prospect nationally for the 2025 class, according to the 247Sports Composite.

Tennessee has the No. 6 class in the nation after a four-commitment July and a six-commitment June.

Five-star David Sanders Jr. is a top Tennessee football target

Sanders has been a focus for the Tennessee staff for some time as one of the most-coveted prospects in the nation.

The 6-foot-6, 290-pound Sanders has Tennessee in his final four along with Georgia, Nebraska and Ohio State. He announced a commitment date of Aug. 17 on X, formerly known as Twitter. The nation's top-ranked offensive lineman has visited Tennessee multiple times, including a June official visit.

"As this month goes, the dead (period), still a lot of recruiting opportunities for us as we get ready to kick off training camp here," Heupel said.

How Tennessee football has recruited North Carolina under Josh Heupel

Tennessee has signed three prospects from North Carolina in the past three classes under Heupel, which are his three full classes since he was hired in January 2021.

The Vols play North Carolina State in Charlotte in the 2024 Duke’s Mayo Classic on Sept. 7, 2024 at Bank of America Stadium, home of the Carolina Panthers.

"The state of North Carolina is really important to us," Heupel said. "That is how we recruit it. The opportunity that we have in Week 2 in front of them, playing inside that state is a really unique opportunity as a program as well.”

The Vols signed pass rusher James Pearce Jr. in 2022. They landed defensive lineman Daevin Hobbs and wide receiver Nathan Leacock in 2023. Pearce was the top-ranked signee in 2022, while Hobbs and Leacock were two of the top four in the 2023 class.

"You look at our early signing classes, they had a guy like James Pearce that has come into this program, grown and really developed himself as a player and as a person," Heupel said.

Defensive lineman Charles House, a 6-3, 288-pound prospect from Charlotte, is committed in the 2025 class. Tennessee has players committed from 11 states in the 2025 class, including six in-state prospects. UT has commitments from three of the top four players in Tennessee.

Tennessee football has the No. 6 recruiting class nationally

Tennessee finished July on a tear on the recruiting trail, landing safety Lagonza Hayward on Saturday before flipping tight end Da'Saahn Brame from Oregon on Sunday. Both are four-star recruits.

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“Really excited about what our staff and our players have done on the recruiting side of it, we just got done with another huge weekend," Heupel said.

Hayward ranked the No. 10 safety and No. 95 player overall in the 2025 class by 247Sports Composite. He is a 6-1, 200-pound prospect from Toombs County High in Lyons, Georgia. He chose Tennessee over Georgia and Florida. He also had offers from Southern Cal, Alabama, Florida State and South Carolina among others.

Brame is a 6-6, 235-pounder from Derby, Kansas. He is the No. 5 tight end and the No. 112 player overall in the 2025 class. He committed to Oregon on June 29 before flipping to Tennessee. Brame took official visits to Tennessee, Oregon, Oklahoma, LSU and Ole Miss since April, 247Sports reported.

News Sentinel reporter Adam Sparks contributed to this report

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Josh Heupel explains Tennessee football recruiting in North Carolina