Future Tennessee Vol Moseley showing off

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FUTURE FOCUSTennessee's highly touted 2014 recruiting class will be a busy group the next couple of days. The Vols have roughly half of the 33-player class participating in one of four national high school all-star games across the country. Here is a list of those games and the Tennessee commitments in them.Under-Armour All-American GameWhen: Today at 4 p.m. (ESPN)Where: Tampa, Fla.UT commitments included: linebacker Dillon Bates and kicker Aaron MedleyU.S. Army All-American BowlWhen: Saturday at 1 p.m. (NBC)Where: San Antonio, TexasUT commitments included: safety Todd Kelly Jr., receiver Josh Malone, linebacker Kevin Mouhon and tailback Jalen Hurd (not playing due to injury)Offense-Defense All-American BowlWhen: Friday at 5 p.m. (ESPN3)Where: Orlando, Fla.UT commitments included: defensive linemen Derek Barnett and Cory Thomas, offensive guard/defensive tackle Charles Mosley, cornerback Emmanual Moseley, receiver Vic Wharton III, tight end Daniel Helm and safety Cortez McDowellSemper Fidelis All-American BowlWhen: Sunday at 9 p.m. (Fox Sports 1)Where: Carson, Calif.UT commitments included: offensive lineman Orlando Brown Jr., safety Rashaan Gaulden, defensive end Dewayne Hendrix

KNOXVILLE - When he committed to play football at Tennessee a little less than four months ago, Emmanuel Moseley was well under the recruiting radar.

The do-it-all athlete from Dudley High School in Greensboro, N.C., was committed to UNC Charlotte, a Championship Subdivision program that just finished its first football season, when he switched to the Volunteers in early September.

Since then, Moseley has continued to prove what he can do.

Fresh off winning a state championship and locking down the defensive MVP honors at the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas in December, he is playing in Friday's Offense-Defense All-American Bowl in Orlando before he enrolls at UT and starts his collegiate career next week.

"Pretty much I just want to put myself in the best chance to be able to go against some of the best receivers," Moseley said Tuesday evening during a phone interview with the Times Free Press.

"I just want to be able to go out there and show myself and show how good I can play against those top receivers. We've had two practices so far, and I've done very good. The coaches have said I'm doing good."

The 6-foot, 160-pound Moseley helped Dudley win the Class 4-A state championship almost four weeks ago to complete a season in which he piled up 2,700 yards running and throwing and accounted for 46 total touchdowns as the Panthers' quarterback. He chipped in four interceptions at cornerback, which is where he'll play for Tennessee.

A week after winning the title, the raw, speedy Moseley registered seven tackles in the Shrine Game, an annual all-star contest featuring the top prospects in North and South Carolina.

Tennessee first contacted Moseley last May, a couple of months before he performed at one of the Vols' summer camps in Knoxville. Two months later, the Vols offered him a scholarship, and Moseley immediately jumped at the opportunity.

"It felt good because of what I knew," he said. "I told myself I know I can do it, and I'm just glad that they gave me the opportunity since other schools didn't. I'm ready to take advantage of this opportunity."

Since his commitment to Tennessee, Moseley received a scholarship offer from North Carolina State, while Clemson contacted him and Georgia "tried to come at me a little bit," he said.

Moseley said his intention throughout high school was to enroll early wherever he went, so when Tennessee's coaching staff asked him to arrive in January, it went right along with his plan.

"I just want to go up there and try to do everything the coaches ask me and try to do it correctly," he said. "It's not going to happen like I want it to happen, but just pretty much go out there and work hard and do what God gave me the abilities [to do]."

Preseason injuries to junior college transfer Riyahd Jones and walk-on Michael Williams hampered Tennessee's thin cornerback position last season. Cam Sutton starred as a true freshman and earned All-SEC honors starting opposite rising senior Justin Coleman, and Malik Foreman, another true freshman, was Tennessee's third option at the position.

Moseley and Washington, D.C., four-star prospect D'Andre Payne both are enrolling next week to add some more competition at corner, and Evan Berry, one of former Vols safety Eric Berry's younger twin brothers, also could play there.

"They told me if they didn't want me to play, they wouldn't have gotten me to enroll early, you know?" Moseley said. "Most people that enroll early, they want them to play and they have a good chance of playing. They just want to put some weight on me and see how I do, because they know about my talents and my speed and all that.

"The coaches, they were very loyal to me. It made me positive. They told me that if I came to their camp, I could possibly have an offer. When they told me that I could come to the camp and get the offer, I loved their loyalty, and I feel that Coach Jones is actually turning the program around and I want to be a part of something like that."

Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.

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