Tennessee football lost two impact corners from the past two seasons with Jermod McCoy and Colton Hood moving on to the NFL. So the Vols replaced SEC experience with SEC experience at one of the most important spots on the field.
That’s why ESPN ranked new Tennessee corner Kayin Lee, the Auburn transfer, at No. 68 on its list of the top-100 newcomers in college football this season.
“The Vols desperately needed experience at corner,” ESPN’s Billy Tucker wrote while breaking down the rankings, “and new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles landed Lee, an SEC veteran. Knowles’ defenses have ranked in the top 25 in average yards per game over the past three seasons at Ohio State and Penn State. Lee is a great option as he tries to keep that streak going in Knoxville.”
Kayin Lee: 81 tackles, 3 INTs in 36 games at Auburn
Lee visited Ohio State, Missouri and Texas A&M before committing to the Vols on January 7. Aside from just Knowles, he’ll play under the new-look Tennessee defensive staff that includes co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Anthony Poindexter, and cornerbacks coach Derek Jones.
The 5-foot-11, 180-pound Lee, from Ellenwood, Ga., had 81 tackles, 2.0 sacks and three interceptions while playing in 36 games over the last three seasons at Auburn. He had 18 tackles as a freshman in 2023, then 32 in 2024 and 31 last season.
He picked off two passes in 2024 and another one this season, while also recording 17 passes defended in his three seasons with the Tigers.
He was a three-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, ranked No. 126 nationally, No. 13 at cornerback and No. 7 in the state of Georgia.
‘He’s an impact talent and sticky cover corner who plays physically’
Tennessee added 21 transfers in the lone NCAA Transfer Portal window in December. Lee was one of six defensive backs, alongside safeties Qua Moss, DeJaun Lane, DJ Burks and T.J. Metcalf and cornerbacks Tevis Metcalf and Jadais Richard.
Only Michigan corner Smith Snowden, the Utah transfer who followed new Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham to Ann Arbor, ranked ahead of Lee at corner on ESPN’s top-100 ranking.
“Lee has 36 games of SEC experience over three seasons at Auburn,” Tucker wrote, “where he spent most of the past two years in a starting role, and that’s instantly valuable for Tennessee’s secondary. He’s an impact talent and sticky cover corner who plays physically at the line of scrimmage.
“His hips are fluid and he has the speed to carry receivers downfield. Lee does a great job limiting offensive production while being competitive at the catch point, giving up only two touchdowns since 2024 when targeted.”