photo by Tennessee Athletics
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee football coach Butch Jones has signed junior college four-star running back Alvin Kamara, who is from Norcross, Ga., and originally signed with Alabama and then transferred to Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College.
Information on Kamara:
R-Sophomore • Running Back • 5-11 • 200
Norcross, Ga. • Norcross H.S./Alabama/Hutchinson C.C. (Kansas)
Running backs coach Robert Gillespie on Kamara: "Alvin is an extremely competitive kid. He has an explosive element to his game that will allow him to help us immediately. I'm excited to coach him this Spring and believe that his addition will create a healthy competition in the running backs room."
Prospect Rankings
247 Sports: 4-star (No. 4 JUCO overall prospect, No. 2 JUCO running back, No. 2 JUCO prospect in Kansas)
ESPN: 4-star (No. 2 JUCO overall prospect, No. 2 JUCO running back)
Rivals: 4-star
Scout: 5-star
2014 - R-Freshman At Hutchinson Community College:
• Played 2014 season at Hutchinson Community College in Kansas for coach Rion Rhoades
• Named KJCCC Offensive Player of the Year
• In nine games, ran for 1,211 yards (134.6 per game) with 18 touchdowns
• Led Blue Dragons with 1,469 all-purpose yards and 21 touchdowns
• Caught 18 passes for 219 yards and three receiving touchdowns
• Helped Blue Dragons to school-record 11 victories and No. 4 national JUCO ranking
• Rushed for 100-plus yards in eight of nine games including first seven of the season
• Ran for career-best 220 yards and four touchdowns in win over Iowa Central (9/20) as he totaled 283 all-purpose yards
• Follows in the footsteps of NFL Pro Bowler Cordarrelle Patterson in joining Tennessee after playing at Hutchinson
2013 - Freshman At Alabama:
• Redshirt season as a true freshman at the University of Alabama
High School:
• Starred at Norcross High School in Georgia for Coach Keith Maloof
• No. 1 all-purpose back in the 247Composite, the No. 5 player in Georgia and the No. 42 player nationally
• Nation's No. 2 all-purpose by Rivals.com and the No. 45 player in the Rivals100
• Ranked as the No. 6 player in Georgia by Rivals
• Selected to participate in the 2013 Under Armour All-American Game
• No. 32 in the ESPN150 and the No. 4 running back and No. 4 player in Georgia
• 247Sports listed him as the No. 3 all-purpose back and the No. 7 player in Georgia, while ranking him 66th in the Top247
• Invited to "The Opening" in the summer of 2012 on the Nike campus in Oregon
• Rushed for 2,264 yards and 26 touchdowns while averaging 7.5 yards per carry as a senior in 2012
• Added 22 receptions for 286 yards and five touchdowns
• Second-team All-American as a running back by MaxPreps
• Earned Georgia Mr. Football honors from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
• Class AAAAAA Player of the Year and garnered first-team All-State honors from the Georgia Sports Writers Association
• Added 1,300 yards and 17 touchdowns as a junior in 2011
Personal:
• Full name: Alvin Mentian Kamara
• Born: July 25, 1995
(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)