Tyson Bacon details Tennessee commitment after witnessing win over Alabama
Hoover, Alabama defensive lineman Tyson Bacon has been trending to Tennessee for quite a while. He quietly came into town Saturday afternoon to watch Tennessee beat Alabama and commit to Josh Heupel and company after the game. On Monday morning, he made it official by announcing his pledge.
“From the jump, my first SEC offer,” Bacon said. “They, they came in really strong, really family oriented. I just love the environment. Every time I’m up there, every time we’re around, they show the love and it’s just an amazing time every time I come to Neyland.”
So what sold him on Tennessee? It was the people and in particular the coaching staff. He loves how the Vols play defense.
“The defensive staff,” Bacon said. “They’re very aggressive. Tim Banks, he does an amazing job. He does an amazing job changing the fronts. Coach Garner and Chop, they do an amazing job with the D-Line. Everything is just aggressive and they have a great relationship with all the players.”
The Michigan native is relatively new to the state of Alabama, having moved to Birmingham during his freshman year. Having two coaches at Tennessee that are very familiar with the Yellowhammer State in Rodney Garner and Levorn Harbin (Coach Chop) only helped the relationship building process with the Vols.
“Every time I talk to them, we can relate,” Bacon said. “If I’m playing a rivalry or a team, they know everything about it. You know, it is like it’s family. They know the roads, they know everywhere. They know everywhere I’m talking about where I’m going. So it just makes communicating real easy.”
Having witnessed Tennessee’s latest win over Alabama on Saturday night, Bacon told Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel that he was planning on playing in this game the next time the Crimson Tide come to Knoxville. That was a moment that Heupel got excited about. 
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“It was a very big moment when, I told Coach Heup,” Bacon said. “It was just the excitement on his face, knowing that we’ve been talking for a very long time, and I could just see that I felt welcome.
“His personality, he’s someone to relate to. I mean, he doesn’t seem like he’s not too good for you to talk to him. You can talk to him about everything. He hangs out with his players. He knows to have fun and he knows when to be serious.”
So what is Tennessee getting in the big defensive lineman?
“I feel like I do a good job on violent strike, stopping the run mostly, getting the pressure on the qb, getting on the run outside where the ends could come and hit ’em in the backfield,” Bacon said. “I practice that a lot and I just feel no one’s getting past in the run game when I’m in there.”
And where does he need to continue to improve?
“I feel like I should work on everything,” Bacon said. “Fundamentals, you can never get too many fundamentals, so I just get great at the fundamentals and work on my IQ.”
Bacon is the second 2026 in back to back days as he joined offensive lineman Brandon Anderson, who committed on Sunday.
