Relationships pave way for Tennessee to land three-star QB

Quarterback recruit Derrick Baker is from Alpharetta, Georgia. He has nearly 30 offers to his name from all over the country, but he decided to commit to the Tennessee Volunteers on Wednesday.

This decision came despite heavy interest from the Florida State Seminoles. It was interesting that Baker reciprocated in a big way.

Ultimately, though, he felt that the vibes were good with Tennessee. 

The strength of the relationships that he built with Vols head coach Josh Heupel and other members of the Tennessee staff played a massive role in the decision.

“It was the relationships that I built with all of the coaches there, from coaches (Landry) Jones and (Jared) Peery to Coach Heupel and Coach (Joey) Halzle,” Baker said, according to Ryan Callahan of 247Sports. “Plus, I know that I’ll get developed there and look good in orange at the same time.”

Baker is a South Florida native, but he transferred from St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Milton High School in Alpharetta last year. Part of why he moved to play for Milton was that he had development in mind. 

Derrick Baker wants to be the next great QB for Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Volunteers 

Several great quarterbacks have been trained under Heupel, whether from his time as a quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator to his previous head coaching stint at UCF.

That’s a list that includes Landry Jones, Drew Lock, Dillon Gabriel, Hendon Hooker, Joe Milton and Nico Iamaleava.

This past season at Tennessee, quarterback Joey Aguilar threw for 3,565 yards and 24 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions.

“I’ve seen Tennessee a lot since I was younger and everything,” Baker said earlier this year. “I’ve seen quarterbacks that come out of here and perform in the NFL, so they know how to develop quarterbacks to the next level.”

According to the 247Sports Composite, Baker is ranked as the No. 37 quarterback in the 2027 class.

Again, Florida State was in on this one, but Tennessee ended up getting the recruiting win.

“It was FSU that they beat out in the end. It was a tough choice. But, really, the talks with the coaches made it extremely easy,” Baker said of the Vols.