It appears Tennessee football will finish preseason practice with Southern Cal transfer wide receiver Bru McCoy still not eligible. However, schools are under no obligation to keep a player on scholarship once they enter the portal. After reading, he closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, and a voice pops into his head. He had a choice: grit his teeth, push through it, just stay at Texas, and look back on his life and say although he went to Texas, he wanted to be at USC the whole timeor leave. OK, there's still a weight room. See who he is without football. That's what one man said when Horace McCoy Jr. answered the phone. Genuinely good. More mindfulness. The answer was always no. And all three plan to return next season. It could come down to a bunch of schools, and we don't REALLY know what McCoy wants. He performed well on the field during spring practice, made friends and really liked the coaching staff. He's passionate about social justice, world issues and travel. A player is free to withdraw his name at any time. Bru finished the call and explained to his mom that he DM'd the guy after reading his negative comment. That he is not a was. ET, SEC Network) at Neyland Stadium. That what I put myself through wasn't for nothing.". The Bru McCoy Transfer Saga Is Uncharted Territory in the NCAA The craziest story of the college football season has been the transfers of Bru McCoy, who looks set to wind up at USC after. That decision has helped transform the game of college football by giving players an easier opportunity to change teams and direct their playing careers. He didn't hold a press conference on signing day. "I had to kind of come to terms with myself," he says. "At no point since Bru entered the transfer portal in January have we objected to him being made immediately eligible to play at Tennessee. ], I want to thank God, my coaches and Vol Nation for a great two years in Knoxville, Merrill posted on Twitter. The former five-star recruit did notsuit upfor the Trojans this year following an offseason arrest for a felony domestic violence charge. In a lot of ways, Bru feels like he felt during freshman year of high school, when he didn't know what would happen, taking a leap of faith to attend Mater Dei. 236 Receiving Yards, 21 Receptions, 2 Touchdowns (6 game short season). They want you to treat the people around you well, but they also want you to flourish on the field, and theyre going to push you in an uplifting way, but theyre going to push you and get as much as they can out of you. 2005-2023 CBS INTERACTIVE ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. McCoy is the third USC football player in the last two seasons to leave amid an investigation or university disciplinary review. We're playing Call of Duty! (Ashley Landis / Associated Press) After a lost season that began with . By the end of his first visit to Knoxville, McCoy was sold on following the same path as Jones and McGrath. And, watching, Horace realized something about his son: "He isn't a boy anymore. McCoy came away convinced that he would thrive in Heupels system and enjoy playing for Tennessees coaches. McCoy said he informed the Vols of his decision in late March before the end of his official visit toKnoxville. To 45-year-old men on Twitter he'd never met in states he'd never visited. McCoy, a 6-foot-3, 220-pounder, was a five-star prospect and the No. Following Kliff Kingsbury's sudden departure to the NFL shortly after USC hired him as offensive coordinator, McCoy transferred to Texas. He just signed the papers in his school's library and then called Helton and told him how proud he was to be a Trojan. Signing to USC was one of the best days of his life. He feared his career was over. He joined The Times after six years with the Southern California News Group. The district attorney in Los Angeles County declined to file charges in August, and USCs Title IX office dismissed the case in February. He'd wake up at 6 a.m., walk to the training facility to get his temperature taken, find it was still over 100, walk back to his apartment and try to sleep on his stiff leather couch, sweating the rest of the day. I don't think anyone at 18 really has it all figured out." #4 Pos: WR Ht: 6026 Wt: 220 40: 4.67 DOB: 6/22/2000 Hometown: Palos Verdes, CA High School: Mater Dei Eligibility: 2023. Really quiet. They've all come to realize something: The people who comment are just people too. Bruce Rollinson, Mater Dei's coach, would notice how Bru straightened his arms when he'd make a mistake, could see the frustration rising in him. Bru McCoy Tennessee Volunteers We met the players and the entire coaching staff and everything they talked up lined up when we saw them in action. Players that enter their name into the transfer portal dont necessarily leave their schools. He'd have to tell him to relax. "For me to return to USC was probably one of the most difficult and decisive decisions I have made in my entire lifeand probably the best one," he says. His official visit to Tennessee in late March allowed him to attend at least a portion of two of the Vols spring practices and spend plenty of time with Heupels staff, including first-yearwide receivers coach Kelsey Pope. Bru thought of all the moments his mom would drag him out of his bed at sunrise, how she'd watch the sun come up; or how his dad would respond, "Because I told you so!" In fact, there was a time in 2019 where Smart had four of his players arrested in just the last month. Always there. At first, he was diagnosed with strep throat, but the fevers grew inconsistent. During the 2021 season and the following off-season, the Tennessee football team lost 18 players to the transfer portal. "No way! She smiled. "That it wasn't all for nothing. All this misery, the back-and-forth. So he bikes. They were the reason he was able to keep going. He shattered his ankle in sixth grade, and when Alexa ran out to the P.E. McCoy has had a turbulent ride beyond those transfers at USC. McCoy, an ESPN top-30 recruit in 2019, entered the transfer portal in January, committed to Tennessee in May and has been practicing with the team as he awaits an eligibility decision from the NCAA. Bru had arrived at USC in good shape but began to feel beyond drained after every workout. That meant the world to Bru: to be loved, to be seen. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound McCoy is setto officially join the Vols this month to attend May mini-session classes, giving them a veteran wide receiver capable of helping them replace former starters Jonesand JaVonta Payton. One of the hardest parts was facing himself. 6 overall player available in the transfer portal at the time of his announcement. A fascinating prospect due to his ability to play both wide receiver and edge rusher at an elite level, McCoy ranked as the No. McCoy has had a less than stellar path to Tennessee . "It was a huge load," says Arthur Aragon, his counselor at Mater Dei. Jordan Addison, WR Old. The NCAA created the transfer portal on Oct. 15, 2018. One minute he was playing in the All-American Bowl. Whilethe Los Angeles district attorney declined to press charges. Why would he ever do that? He'd attend class and practice for the rest of the day, having double responsibilities as a two-way player, not coming home until 9 at night. He had been loved, then hated. However, the university continued its investigation and McCoy never returned to the program. A teenager. McCoy emerged as a consensus 5-star recruit and one of the best-ever players with the storied Mater Dei program in Los Angeles. "I put so much into him leaving, for what? 0:04. The Mystery of Bru McCoy He was the top athlete in the 2019 recruiting class, then transferred twice and missed time with an illness no one could explain. I'm only 19 now. He was arrested in July for suspicion of domestic violence on a spouse or someone else who lives with him, and as a result he didn't play a down at SC this year. He wasn't sure if his judgment was cloudedif he had chosen this place just because it was steeped in childhood nostalgia. He took eight classes his senior year, all during the season (students regularly take six). He thought attending Mater Dei, instead of going to neighborhood Palos Verdes High School, was the best option to achieve his college football dreams. SC didn't do me right.' The way I saw it is, theres an opportunity, said McCoy, who was ranked the No. He was a three-star signee in the 2020 class. Merrill, a sophomore and. Early life and high school career. He was still trying to figure it out. But youve got to come experience something. - Named the 2018 MaxPreps National Football Player of the Year and the 2019 All-American Bowl Player of the Year. USC football standout wide receiver Bru McCoy has entered the transfer portal, and there isn't a ton of clear direction when it comes to where he's going to go. Its an unbelievable staff, McCoy told GoVols247 before publicly revealing his decision. (Ashley Landis / Associated Press) After a lost season that began with his arrest and. USC third-year wide receiver Bru McCoy entered the transfer portal Thursday, 247Sports has learned. (DS#1 WR) rSr/2024 WR Bru McCoy , Tennessee. 9 overall recruit in the 2021 class per the 247Sports Composite. His stomach would rumble with excitement, with nerves, heading down the 405 each morning. The internet was not some abstract place, something that shut off once he closed his laptop. He participated in spring practices there before eventually transferring back to USC in June. Things dont just get handed to you, given to you. After a lost season that began with his arrest and temporary removal from USCs football team, Bru McCoy has entered the NCAA transfer portal, ending a tumultuous three-year tenure with the Trojans. McCoy has been a confusing character when it comes to the transfer portal before. Another time, riding a motorized four-wheel bike, he zoomed off so quickly that he banged straight into the house. Can McCoy, . Bru was always on his way somewhere. "It was literally nothing to do with anything with Texas. when he'd walk by. 1 seed in West, Another Trevor Bauer defamation suit is thrown out, Darvin Ham says the Lakers are sitting Anthony Davis as a precaution, Despite cap issues, Chargers GM Tom Telesco says Keenan Allen isnt going anywhere, Georgias Jalen Carter charged with racing in crash that killed teammate, staff member. AUGUST 23 . August 22, 2022 8:24 am ET Wide receiver Bru McCoy committed to Tennessee in May. People who thought that just because he could catch a football and might one day make millions doing so, they had a right to condemn him. He caught 21 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns. He had an enormous amount of blood drawn. ", He takes a breath. USC wide receiver Bru McCoy runs the ball during the 2020 Pac-12 championship game against Oregon. He had heart scans, brain scans. That he was more than his transfers, his skills on the field. Unique two-way player with a high projection at receiver or outside linebacker. USC wide receiver Bru McCoy runs the ball during the 2020 Pac-12 championship game against Oregon. As soon as he got on, he zoomed off. "Maybe this isn't the right place for me? My best take on where he lands hits on three specific schools. 'Quietness?' He was an athlete. But finding out, the day after he enrolled in classes, that Trojan offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury was leaving to coach the Arizona Cardinals, was jarring. At three years old, he leapt up on stage at a local Hard Rock Cafe and started dancing. "I felt like the weight of the world was on my shoulders," Bru says. Im fired up. He was in the hospital for three days, having to get IVs because he sweated so much he would begin to cramp. Who can help student-athletes cash in? The Vols havent made any promises to McCoy, he said, about the role he might play once he arrives at Tennessee later this spring. Where he plays in college will be interesting as he prefers receiver but might have more upside as a 3-4 outside backer. Right before the championship game, he went into the center of the huddle, looked every teammate in the eye and yelled: "Big-time players make big-time plays. So I came in with just an open mind completely. Schumann returning to Georgia, Transfer portal tracker: Breaking down options for top players, Football recruiting class rankings: Deion Sanders, Lincoln Riley land key prospects. But his body wouldn't allow him. "He only knows to go as hard as he can possibly go at all times.". "I'm not going to tell you what you're doing is right, because it's not. Hooker attended James B. Dudley High School in Greensboro, North Carolina. His fever finally went down. He would sweat so profusely in his sleep that he'd have to flip over his mattress each day. A big one was the culture at Tennessee. Runs well enough to get behind a defense, makes the tough catch look routine and can do something with the ball in his hands after the catch as well. For more information, please read our Legal Disclaimer. He researches random topics and often pulls over when he sees a homeless person to give them money. 'Am I OK with who I am?' Be here, in the now. "'Why am I living life in such a hurry?'". Ryan Kartje is the USC beat writer at the Los Angeles Times. It bothered all of them that people said he ran from competitionnot only because Bru was arguably the best receiver at Texas, but also because he was leaving for USC, a place known for producing top-tier receivers. A doctor suggested it may have been a virus that was no longer present but still couldn't determine what he had. USC third-year wide receiver Bru McCoy entered the transfer portal Thursday, 247Sports has learned. This community, the campus everything the way people treat each other here, it fits the type of person I am. Bru McCoy wont face criminal charges following an allegation of intimate partner violence, but USCs Title IX office is still reviewing the incident and its unclear whether he will be reinstated on the football team. Bru McCoy was in a bad frame of mind as he battled a mysterious illness. There was Alexa, who loved being the water girl at his Pop Warner gameshanding out Gatorade bottles to all the playersand would cry when he lost. LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Wide receiver Bru McCoy (4) of the USC Trojans warms up before the spring game at Los Angeles Coliseum on April 17, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. Saying Uiagalelei is going to be Clemson . McCoy is already listed in the Tennessee student directory, which is a positive sign and one step . "I wasn't running from adversity. Someone like me, I think I will thrive here. To the media. "Haters are really just haters on social media, but they're really fans that don't want to say they're fans. McCoy would never return to the Trojans after that. "People dehumanized me," says Bru, now back at USC and planning to play for the Trojans as a redshirt freshman whenever college football resumes. A few weeks ago, Shelby found an old highlight tape of Bru reposted on Instagram. Shelby woke him up every day at 5 a.m., making him egg-and-cheese burritos or bacon-and-egg bagel sandwiches, and he'd be out of the door by 5:45 a.m., in time to lift weights in Orange County by 7 a.m. - Father Horace played football at Northern Illinois - Mother Shelby was All-American volleyball player at Northern Illinois. She found that her son had responded to a negative comment that read: "Bru is a nobody. Then she did what she tries not to do: scrolled down to the comments. McCoy dealt with some off-field issues and elected to transfer away from USC as it underwent a coaching change this offseason. "There can be a whole storm raging around you. ", "Mom," Bru said. No. He had a 101-degree fever. It truly goes back to when Mark Richt was the coach, but it hasn't stopped with Kirby Smart's reign. Now, he comes to a Volunteers offense that ranked top 10 in college football a year ago and features Hendon Hooker as one of the SEC's most efficient quarterbacks. 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