Jalin Hyatt is a very explosive athlete off the ball. His name has been swirling around since a 5 touchdown performance that helped Tennessee defeat their rival, Alabama.

Below is Jalin Hyatt’s full Scouting card with a year-by-year breakdown:

Player Information:

Name: Jalin Hyatt

School: Tennessee

Position: WR, Y

Jersey #: 11

Alignment/Scheme: Slot

Games Watched: Vs Bama , vs Pitt , vs Florida , Vs LSU

Major Factors: # Notes:

(Grading Scale:       9 - Special  8 - All-Pro  7.5 - Pro Bowler  7 - Good Starter  6.5 - Avg. Starter  6 - Good Backup  5.5 - Role Player  5 - Developmental)

Personal/Behavior: ? N/A

Athletic Ability: 7 Not exceptionally quick, but has elite sprinter speed. Was a 10.4 100M runner in high school and 21.1 200M runner. 

Strength & Explosion: 5 He is explosive in his run, but he is not strong at the point of contact. He has a frail frame and is easily knocked over by larger, more physical defenders. Not a strong blocker, but will get into position on blocks.

Competes: 7 Will compete for 50/50 balls, but he is not excellent on jump balls. Will work to get position on defenders for blocks. 

Production: 6 First-year starter. Has had a stellar 2022 season, but he had not contributed a ton prior to 2022. 

Mental/Learning: 6 Broke the starting lineup in 2022. Only 1 start in 2021, on the roster since 2020. 

Injury History: ? None

Player Summary:

Report: Jalin Hyatt is a very explosive athlete off the ball. He gives superior effort in eating up the defensive back’s cushion. Hyatt is more of a deep threat than a route runner or possession catcher. He does not run a full route tree, but I believe he can develop his ability since he possesses the speed and quickness. He will need work in getting out of routes, but he is fast enough to create separation out of his break. Does a decent job of finding windows, but he relies on his speed to run routes so he occasionally struggles to find soft zones. He excels on the fade, go and post routes. He is not a great running hitch and slant as he does not have great footwork for the quick game. 

After the catch, Hyatt leaves much to be desired. He is not very shifty, so he does not make the first defender miss after the catch. His speed allows him to catch the ball and immediately get vertical. However, Hyatt is solid with the ball in his hand and he has a high motor. 

Hyatt is not a devastating blocker, which can be attributed to his frame. However, he will work to position himself on defenders which can compensate for his lack of strength. Tennessee typically will throw screen game to the opposite side since he is not a strong blocker. In situations where blocking is needed, the team will not rely on Hyatt to get the job done. 

Against University of Alabama (10/15), Hyatt scored 5 touchdowns in a victory and had over 200 yards receiving. Against Pitt (9/10) Hyatt reeled in a career high 11 receptions. To add, Hyatt also had 2 touchdowns against conference opponent LSU (10/8).

Pro Comparison: Russell Gage

Round/Grade: 4th Round 

ITH Writer/COO

-By: LeMarkus Bailey

What an absolute dumpster fire the Tennessee Football Program has become. I can tell you one thing, I doubt Peyton Manning is going to be walking through those doors in Knoxville anytime soon because that’s about the only thing that could save this program from itself.

The school announced Tuesday the firing of HC Jeremy Pruitt after three underwhelming seasons in Knoxville, citing his performance on the field, and refusing to pay his buyout due to the alleged NCAA violations that happened under Pruitt’s watch.

  Here’s the memo the school sent Pruitt: "The conduct by at least two assistant coaches and several recruiting staff members are likely to lead to an NCAA finding of Level I and/or Level II violations of one or more Governing Athletic Rules. The University also has concluded that these likely findings were the result of either your material neglect or lack of reasonable preventive compliance measures." Yikes.

Pruitt plans to fight the school over his buyout, which will drag the school even farther into the abyss of irrelevance. That, along with the sudden retirement of AD Phillip Fulmer, which ends a just-as-bad tenure as Pruitt. Turns out being a legendary coach doesn’t translate to being a qualified athletic director.

I guess that’s what happens when you let your fans dictate your football hires.

What’s even worse is that both Pruitt AND Fulmer signed unjustified extensions in the offseason. Outside of some solid (but now suspect pending investigation) recruiting, they had shown nothing to deserve an extension at all. 0-6 against rivals Georgia, Alabama, and Florida, and a 16-19 overall record. That doesn’t scream “bringing the program back to its’ glory days”.

Nine staffers along with Pruitt were let go from the program this week, so the blame is widespread. A report came out on Tuesday that alleged the Vols would stuff cash in McDonald’s bags and hand them to recruits on visits. I mean, come on.

I guess it really does just mean more.

The Vols haven’t won a major bowl game or won ten games in over a decade, and that trend doesn’t look like it will end anytime soon.

Writer

-By: TJ Mathewson