Florida four-star 2025 RB Justin Thurman covers Tennessee visit
Written by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG
The spring evaluation period has taken 2025 running back Justin Thurman to the next level in his recruitment. Elite exposure camps and off-season track meets have helped propel Thurman on recruiting boards throughout the country. As word has gotten out on what the Tampa Jesuit talent can do on the field, offers have been quick to follow.
The scholarship opportunities are piling up with Tennessee, Rutgers, Kansas, Toledo, Florida A&M, and Florida among the schools seeking his services.
In early April, Rutgers got their chance to host Thurman, the weekend of April 16 it was Tennessee’s turn.
“It was very good,” Thurman said. “The visit was very informative. I went for their spring game and saw how the offensive scheme works and how they run the program. During the visit I talked to coach (Jerry) Mack (RB), and I talked to coach (Josh) Heupel and coach (Aston) Walter (OGA). They were very informative about the culture and the program at Tennessee.”
Thurman continued sharing the conversation had with coach Mack, “He was talking about where he is from and how he ended up at Tennessee. He also talked about how I would fit in at Tennessee as a bonafide SEC back.”
Justin Thurman at Tennessee.
Seeing the Volunteers’ offense in action, Thurman spoke about the scheme.
“I really liked the way their offense runs,” Thurman stated. “They have inside-zone for running backs and pass concepts on inside of the field. The inside schemes work, the offense scored a lot off of them.”
The crowd in Knoxville was an impressive part of the visit for Thurman.
“I’d say the crowd,” Thurman said. “There were around 60,000 fans there; the stadium holds 102,000. I got a sense of the atmosphere for a game. The crowd was electric and engaged, it was really fun. They are constructing new facilities; they are getting a lot of new things for the players and staff so they can succeed.”
Thurman continued, “The emphasis on family, they take that serious. They want everyone to feel welcomed. They don’t want anyone to feel left out. Family is big for them, one of the ways that showed was the big team BBQ at the indoor facility afterwards. Family, players, coaches – everyone was able to spend time together; that was really cool.”
The trip is not finalized yet, but the next trip for Thurman is lining up with the Kansas Jayhawks at the end of May.