Report: Tennessee set to host former five-star wideout for weekend visit

Tennessee is set to host one of the top available NCAA Transfer Portal prospects this weekend, as a report from Chris Hummer says that former USC wide receiver Bru McCoy will be taking an unofficial visit.

A native of Santa Ana, California, McCoy prepped at Mater Dei High School, where he developed into a five-star recruit, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Ranked as the No. 3 wide receiver in the 2019 recruiting cycle, McCoy was nearly as highly-touted a transfer as he was a high schooler — he ranks as the No. 11 wide receiver in the NCAA Transfer Portal, and he is the second-highest ranked uncommitted wide receiver.

For a full list of NCAA Transfer Portal entries and rankings, click here.

McCoy redshirted his first season at USC in 2019, but he made an immediate impact in 2020, during the COVID-impacted season. He appeared in all six regular-season games, starting three times, and he finished the season with 21 receptions for 236 receiving yards, along with two touchdowns.

McCoy failed to make an impact in 2021, but that’s due to off-the-field issues. McCoy was removed from the USC team prior to the start of the 2021 season following an arrest on suspicion of felony partner intimate violence with injury.

McCoy was arrested on July 24th at 5:30 pm. The violation is listed under California Penal Code section 273.5(a), pertains to a person who “willfully inflicts corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition” upon a spouse, former spouse, cohabitant or dating partner. Per the Los Angeles Times, McCoy was released the same night on a $50,000 bail and he appeared in court on Nov. 24. After the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office reviewed his case, it ultimately concluded that there was insufficient evidence, and McCoy did not face any charges related to the incident.

He later entered the NCAA Transfer Portal on Jan. 13, but McCoy remains unsigned.

More information on the NCAA Transfer Portal amid McCoy’s recruitment

The NCAA Transfer Portal, which covers every NCAA sport at the Division I, II and III levels, is a private database with names of student-athletes who wish to transfer. It is not accessible to the public.

The process of entering the portal is done through a school’s compliance office. Once a player provides written notification of an intent to transfer, the office enters the player’s name in the database and everything is off and running. The compliance office has 48 hours to comply with the player’s request and that request cannot be refused.

Once a player’s name shows up in the portal, other schools can contact the player. Players can change their minds at any point and withdraw from the portal. However, once a player enters the portal, the current scholarship no longer has to be honored. In other words, if a player enters the portal but decides to stay, the school is not obligated to provide a scholarship anymore.

The database is a normal database, sortable by a variety of topics, including (of course) sport and name. A player’s individual entry includes basic details such as contact info, whether the player was on scholarship and whether the player is transferring as a graduate student.

A player can ask that a “do not contact” tag be placed on the report. In those instances, the players don’t want to be  contacted by schools unless they’ve initiated the communication.

The portal has been around since Oct. 15, 2018 and the new calendar cycle within the portal begins each August. For example, the 2021-22 cycle started Aug. 1. During the 2020-21 cycle, 2,626 FBS football players entered the transfer portal (including walk-ons). That comes after 1,681 entered during the 2019-20 cycle and 1,709 during the abbreviated 2018-19 cycle. In comparison, 1,833 Division I basketball players entered the portal during the 2020-21 cycle after totals of 1,020 in 2019-20 and 1,063 in 2018-19.