Skip to main content
Tennessee
Join Now

Knoxville Catholic interior OL Jeremy George-El talks decision to choose Tennessee

4A3DA472-0F39-4C89-9987-5851509375C0by: Matt Ray01/21/26matt_ray_

Nearby Knoxville Catholic 2026 offensive lineman Jeremy George-El has seen an uptick in his recruiting process in recent months, with schools like MTSU, Mercer and UAB showing interest. He visited Tennessee this past weekend for Junior Day, and he chose to commit to the Vols coming off the visit. He announced his choice on social media earlier this evening, and he detailed the decision with Volquest.

“I feel like it’s a program that’s going to develop me a lot as a player, but not just as a player, but as a student, too, student and athlete,” George-El said of the decision. “So that’s a great thing by far. I feel like they’ll bring me to the level where I want to be at.”

George-El had previously scheduled an official visit to UAB, but after Saturday’s visit to Rocky Top, he knew the Vols’ program was the right fit for him.

“I enjoyed everything by far,” George-El said. “Everything from the football aspect to the having fun aspect, it just felt like home. Everything just looked good, sounded good. Everything just was Tennessee, so everything is good.”

The interior offensive lineman has quickly connected with the Tennessee coaching staff in recent weeks, as he had conversations with multiple members of the staff of Saturday leading up to his commitment.
“I love the coaching staff,” he said. “The coaching staff truly made me happy by the way they made everything sound. They made it sound like I would be the key to their offense, like being an extra part of the offense. So that was truly one of the best things.”

He especially enjoyed spending time around the offensive line staff.

“I enjoyed playing pool with Coach Lab,” George-El said. “I had a great time with Coach Elarbee, too. I like how he doesn’t, when he sees you make a mistake, he doesn’t get at you for it. He just stays calm and tells you, ‘It’s OK, next one, on to the next.’”

George-El was also impressed by the way Elarbee coaches his players up.

“I like how he doesn’t, when he sees you make a mistake, he doesn’t get at you for it. He just stays calm and tells you, ‘It’s OK, next one, on to the next.’”