Tennessee CB Rickey Gibson plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, On3’s Pete Nakos. Gibson spent three seasons with the Volunteers. Gibson was expected to be a major player for Tennessee during the 2025 season. However, he suffered a season-ending injury against Syracuse in the season opener. Gibson played just 19 snaps this year. He’s […]
Tennessee CB Rickey Gibson plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, On3’s Pete Nakos. Gibson spent three seasons with the Volunteers.
Gibson was expected to be a major player for Tennessee during the 2025 season. However, he suffered a season-ending injury against Syracuse in the season opener. Gibson played just 19 snaps this year.
He’s been in recovery ever since, but appears to be nearing full health. He’s expected to be healthy in time for spring practice wherever he ends up.
His injury comes after logging career highs across the board in 2024. He totaled 32 total tackles, three pass breakups and a forced fumble across 12 starts.
He helped lead the Tennessee defense to a 10-3 record, which included a trip to the College Football Playoff before ending its season against the eventual national champions, Ohio State. Tennessee finished with an 8-5 record in 2025.
The 2024 Tennessee defense ranked second in the SEC in total defense, allowing 293.2 yards on average. They also held opponents to 16.1 points per game – a mark which sat third among SEC teams.
After the 2024 season, Gibson said he planned to enter the transfer portal. However, he ultimately chose to stay at Tennessee, where he was expected to provide a big boost to the Tennessee secondary heading into 2025.
Before college, Gibson was a four-star recruit per the Rivals Industry Rankings, which is a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. He was the No. 35 cornerback in the 2023 recruiting cycle, and the No. 322 overall player.
He was an early enrollee at Tennessee in Dec. 2022. Gibson participated in Orange Bowl practices before going through spring practice 2023. He made an impact as a true freshman in 2023 before solidifying his starting role in 2024.
In all, he recorded 42 career tackles across 26 games (14 starts) where he also totaled six PBUs and a FF. He’s also a two-time SEC Academic Honor Roll recipient and served as a member of the team’s leadership council.
To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.
Category: General Sports
