Report: Tennessee freshman Chandavian Bradley leaves football team, enrolls at Hutchinson CC

Edge rusher Chandavian Bradley has left the Tennessee football program and is enrolled in junior college in Kansas, according to Parker Thune. Bradley was a four-star recruit in the class of 2023.

Bradley is now reportedly enrolled at Hutchinson Community College. On top of being a four-star recruit, Bradley was an Under Armour All-American coming out of high school.

Bradley had yet to see the field for the Volunteers in a game.

This offseason, Bradley landed in some hot water with local authorities for a reckless driving charge.

Bradley was charged with reckless driving in the spring, according to a police report obtained by the Knoxville News Sentinel. Bradley was the fourth Tennessee football player hit with citations for dangerous or illegal behaviors behind the wheel in a matter of months.

Bradley was cited for reckless driving shortly before midnight on March 23 after being pulled over in his 2020 Dodge Charger, according to police reports obtained by the News Sentinel. University of Tennessee police issued the citation, pulling Bradley over by an iconic campus site, The Rock.

Other information about Bradley’s citation was not included in the police report.

“We are aware of the citation, and this matter is being handled internally,” Tennessee said in a statement to the News Sentinel.

Bradley, a 2023 four-star recruit, is the fourth Tennessee player to be charged for dangerous driving or other illicit behaviors operating a car.

All-conference defensive end James Pearce, starting corner back Doneiko Slaughter and backup running back DeSean Bishop have also all been cited since October 2023.

Slaughter and Pearce had their charges dismissed after paying court costs and Bishop agreed to a plea deal that will expunge the violation from his record after six months of good behavior.

Tennessee is a potential SEC title contender in 2024

It has been over 25 years since Tennessee partied like it was ’98 as conference and national champions. That celebration could start back up, at least in the league sense, though, in 2024 according to Greg McElroy.

McElroy looked at several conference title droughts during a recent episode of ‘Always College Football’. Of the 10 that he assessed, the Volunteers’ was one of the shorter ones even though it still hasn’t happened yet since the turn of the century.

“Tennessee has not won the SEC since 1998,” McElroy noted. “It has been a quarter century since the Tennessee Volunteers were named the SEC Champions.”

However, this season could very well end that on Rocky Top.

For one, McElroy noted their returners, namely James Pearce, from a defense that finished in the Top-25 after allowing just 20.3 ppg. last season. For two, he also highlighted their offensive pieces, specifically their receiver corps.

Still, to McElroy and others, the difference in all of it is QB Nico Iamaleava. If the redshirt sophomore makes good on any of the hype surrounding him, that could be what takes Tennessee back to that title-level team.

“Maybe this is the year. We’ve talked already about what they have defensively – we know they have an elite edge defender, we know they have a really good contingent of defensive linemen. We know they’re rock solid on offense with their weapons on the perimeter,” McElroy said. “But it’s the quarterback position – Nico Iamaleava. He’s the guy. If he’s as advertised, they could certainly elevate to the top of the Southeastern Conference.”