Recruiting: DT Brandon Adams Flips from Vanderbilt, Is Commitment #15 for Georgia Tech

HUGE news has come down for Georgia Tech coaches and fans alike, as DT target Brandon Adams has backed off of his commitment to Vanderbilt and committed to play for the Yellow Jackets. The commitment was first reported by Kelly Quinlan of JacketsOnline.com:

#GaTech newest commit is a big time DT from Tenn. Brandon Adams https://t.co/HnK5vRRV4o @uprising_MMXVI pic.twitter.com/8nIKaNoPFD

— Kelly Quinlan (@Kelly_Quinlan) January 25, 2016

This is a big win for Georgia Tech's coaches for a few different reasons. First, Adams committed to Vanderbilt over 6 months ago, on July 20th. That the coaches were able to even get Adams to visit is impressive, but to flip his commitment entirely is really a major win for the staff. Second, it's a big win because Adams is...well, big. Really big. Depending on where you look, Adams is listed at 6'2" and anywhere between 290 and 327 pounds. Assuming he's not at the very bottom of that range, that makes Adams the heaviest player on Georgia Tech's defense from day 1, and provides some real size to the interior line -- which brings us to our last reason that this is a huge win for the staff. The Yellow Jackets have struggled with using interior defensive linemen that are under 300 pounds ever since the departure of T.J. Barnes after the 2012 season. To add an extra-large player to that position group will be a big boost to the defensive line.

As mentioned above, Adams is listed at 6'2" and roughly 305 pounds, and hails from Brentwood, Tennessee (just on the south side of Nashville -- right in Vanderbilt's back yard). He attended the Brentwood Academy, which has been home to several high-profile prospects over the past decade, including well-known Florida State CB Jalen Ramsey. Just this year, Adams has three teammates that are committed to Power-5 level schools -- one each to Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Stanford. Adams joins signing class of 2015 members Brant Mitchell and Nathan Cottrell as the only three members of the team from the state of Tennessee.

A quick look at Adams' senior highlights can be found below. In them, you'll see that Adams exhibits excellent athleticism for a man of his size, chasing down ballcarriers and moving around in the box with relative ease. You'll also see that he's very good at using his hands, particularly in shedding blocks but also in knocking down a couple of passes. Lastly, you'll notice that he does a nice job of, quite simply, eating up space. He uses his instincts well to clog up rushing lanes and create problems for opposing teams.

Adams is a three-star DT recruit per Rivals (5.5) and the 247Sports Composite (0.8476).

Congratulations to Adams and his family on his commitment! We're excited to have them as a part of the Yellow Jacket family.