KNOXVILLE—In what is becoming almost daily news, the Vols picked up another commitment–this time from JUCO linebacker/defensive end Chris Weatherd. The 6-4, 225 pound prospect plays defensive end for Trinity Community College (Texas) but is being recruited to play weak-side linebacker. He could also end up playing Tennessee’s hybrid LEO position depending on how his frame handles UT’s strength and conditioning program.

The Tennessee staff has been in contact with Weatherd for several weeks. Though he hasn’t visited Knoxville, he made the decision to commit after receiving an official offer from Butch Jones on Friday. Weatherd holds offers from Oklahoma, North Texas, Louisiana Tech, and others.

Look for Weatherd’s offer list to grow substantially in the coming months, but he is firmly committed to Tennessee and looks forward to building the Vols back into a perennial SEC power. He plans to graduate from Trinity in December and enroll in January. Weatherd will have three years to play two seasons once he arrives on campus.

He’s an underrated prospect who the staff identified as a possible fit early in the recruiting process. Weatherd has above average speed for a player of his size (he claims to run a 4.5 40-yard dash) and is an adept pass rusher. The Vols will lose the majority of their top linemen and linebackers headed into 2014 and Weatherd will be expected to contribute the moment he steps on campus.

He hasn’t been ranked by the major recruiting services to date, but when he is we’ll update his information. He played linebacker and tight end in high school and also averaged 7 ppg on his school’s basketball team.You can see highlights from his senior year at Creekview High School below.