4/4/2017 football Edit

Ga. TE Tommy Tremble picks up Terps offer, drawing major attention

Pat Donohue

Staff Writer

After putting in the work in the classroom to accrue Ivy League offers from Columbia, Dartmouth, Penn, Princeton and Yale, Alpharetta (Ga.) Johns Creek 2018 tight end Tommy Tremble is now seeing his performance on the football field formulate into looks from Power Five programs.

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Vanderbilt was the first to ante up when they extended a scholarship to Tremble March 31, and just a few days later, on April 3, the 6-foot-4, 220-pound tight end pulled offers from Maryland, Tennessee and Minnesota.

“It’s very exciting,” Tremble told TSR. “I’m just feeling blessed. It’s all coming around.”

The uptick in Tremble’s recruitment began last week when several members of the Commodores coaching staff reached out to him on Twitter.

“Vanderbilt’s entire staff followed me [on Twitter] on Thursday and they asked for my transcripts and stuff, then they asked me to call them on Friday, but when I called them I didn’t expect that sort of life-changing opportunity to show up,” Tremble said. “I was with my grandma, too, so it was really exciting.”

Getting his first offer from one of college football’s major conferences was a big moment for the Peach State prospect, but it was only the tip of the iceberg as Terps offensive coordinator Walt Bell started a domino effect when he came calling on Maryland’s behalf the following Monday.

“The [Maryland] coaching staff had been following me for about a week and a half and they asked for my transcripts and said they really liked my film,” Tremble said. “[Bell] said they like how I’m a big guy--6-foot-4, 225 [pounds]--that’s able to move across the field like a receiver. They liked that and that I can put my hand in the dirt and block when I need to.

“And then [Monday] morning [Bell] asked for my head coach’s info so that they could get in contact with him and he said they had pretty good news. So I thought about [an offer] but I didn’t actually think it was going to happen. But he ended up calling my coach and telling him about it and then he texted me and said, ‘We’re happy to let you know that you have an offer from the University of Maryland.’ I was in disbelief when it happened.”

Maryland’s offer was followed quickly by Tennessee and then fellow Big Ten member Minnesota later that day, and while Tremble was still in awe from his look from the Terps, picking up his second SEC scholarship really made him feel validated as a recruit.

“I received the Tennessee offer about 10 minutes after I received the Maryland one, so I was still kind of in shock from the Maryland one, but after receiving that Tennessee offer, I just felt like all this hard work is coming together,” Tremble said.

Tremble already has some familiarity with the SEC and the recruiting process because his father, Greg Tremble, played defensive back at Georgia before moving on to the NFL where he suited up at safety for the Eagles and Cowboys.

Now that schools from all over the country and getting in on Tremble’s recruitment, his father’s advice and experience is coming in handy.

“[My dad] told me even before I had any offers or interest or anything that whatever happens you just want to keep working hard and don’t let anything change you no matter what, even with these big offers today from Tennessee and Maryland, don’t stop working and don’t feel satisfied with it,” Tremble said.

Tremble will take the short trip to Athens, Ga., to visit his father’s alma mater April 8, and while he doesn’t hold an offer from the Bulldogs yet, he said the Georgia staff has recently been in contact and shown interest. He also plans to visit Tennessee April 15.

Tremble said he hasn’t spoken with Maryland coaches yet about visiting College Park, but added that he plans to discuss that with them soon. Although he hasn’t seen the Terps’ campus yet, he does already know a thing or two about the program.

The main thing that Tremble has noticed about Maryland football are the flashy Under Armour uniforms that tend to incorporate the state flag.

“The first thing that stood out to me on TV was their amazing jerseys,” Tremble said. “Their jerseys are stupid cool. And I know their program has been more noticeable nowadays than it has in a while. I’ve noticed that throughout the years.”

Tremble has also picked up on the fact that the Terps have started to recruit Georgia much heavier since head coach D.J. Durkin and his staff took over after the 2015 season. There are three wide receivers and an athlete from the Peach State in Maryland’s 2017 recruiting class, including Alpharetta, Ga., native Carlos Carriere, who Tremble has a hometown connection with.

“I’ve known Carlos for a while,” Tremble said. “I remember hearing about his Maryland offer in my sophomore season. I don’t know him personally but I know he’s on the team and when I found out about them reaching out to Georgia I thought it was amazing that they’re doing that, reaching outside of their environment.”

Tremble’s only unofficials so far have been to Ivy League schools. He attended Penn’s junior day and also trekked through the campuses of Columbia, Princeton and Yale. Clearly academics will play a major role in Tremble’s final decision, but at the same time, he’s looking for a school that can deliver the total package.

“Obviously academics are a big part because my mom has been telling me since I was little that academics can take me farther than football ever could, and if anything did happen with football at the next level then it would just be an added bonus to have the degree,” Tremble said. “So academics are a big part of my decision but so are the coaching staff and campus and how they feel about football.”