by From staff, wire reports , Times-Picayune

Johnson, 6 feet 4, 295 pounds, said he chose Tennessee from a final list of schools that included LSU, Alabama and UCLA. Johnson also had offers from Oklahoma, Miami, Georgia and every other SEC school.

"I have committed to Tennessee," Johnson said. "Tennessee is the right place for me. It's a home-based university. They treat you like family there. The coaches are incredible. They treat me like I'm one of their own. (Tennessee) is the best place for me to pursue my education."

Johnson cited assistant coach Frank Wilson and Tennessee assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator Ed Orgeron, who also coaches the defensive line, as key contributors to the family-like atmosphere that made Knoxville so attractive. Wilson, a former O.P. Walker head coach, first joined the college ranks as an assistant under Orgeron at Ole Miss. Orgeron delivered Tennessee's scholarship offer earlier this year.

About LSU, Johnson said, "We lost connection. They really weren't recruiting me that hard. They weren't talking to me as much as Tennessee was."

Johnson said he plans to major in kinesiology.

Johnson projects as an academic qualifier, former O.P. Walker coach Skip LaMothe said. Johnson carries a 3.1 grade-point average in core classes and will have completed 11 of the 16 required core subjects by the end of this 2008-09 school year.

Johnson, with 4.83 speed in the 40, bench presses 385 pounds and squats 495. He enters his third year at O.P. Walker having recorded 34 sacks and 39 other tackles for losses as a defensive line starter as a freshman and sophomore. He is a two-time All-District selection in addition to earning All-West Bank honors as a sophomore.

Mike Strom

VOLUNTEERS FLEE: A total of 11 Tennessee players with scholarships have left the Volunteers football program under new coach Lane Kiffin, including four since the end of spring practice.

A team spokesman confirmed that wide receivers Ahmad Paige and Tyler Maples, offensive guard Darris Sawtelle and quarterback B.J. Coleman have left the program since the team's Orange and White scrimmage game on April 18.

Kiffin said during a Big Orange Caravan stop earlier this week that he only wants players who want to play for the Vols.

--- Basketball ---

PATTERSON BACK WITH WILDCATS: Patrick Patterson is returning to Kentucky for his junior season.

The school announced the 6-foot-9 forward will remove his name from the NBA draft to stay in school and play for new coach John Calipari.

Patterson averaged 17.9 points and 9.3 rebounds during his sophomore season with the Wildcats and was picked to the All- Southeastern Conference first team. He entered his name in the NBA draft last month but did not hire an agent, leaving him the opportunity to come back.

Patterson said in a statement the chance to complete his degree in three years while helping the Wildcats compete for a national championship were his primary reasons for staying in school. Calipari said he looks forward to coaching him next fall.

TIDE FORWARD WON'T RETURN: Alabama forward Yamene Coleman won't return for a fifth season after graduating.

Coleman receives his degree in criminal justice today.

He averaged nearly four points and four rebounds last season and has played in 81 total games since redshirting.

Coleman's graduation means 29 of Alabama's last 30 men's basketball players who spent at least four years with the team will have earned their degrees.

--- Golf ---

Tulane IN GOOD POSITION: Conference USA champion Tulane shot 16-over-par 296 on the second day of the Women's NCAA East Regional in Gainesville, Fla., and is in sixth place at 28 over, 13 shots behind leader Alabama. The top eight teams from each of three regional sites compete in the national championships May 19-22 in Owings Mills, Md.

--- Tennis ---

LSU MEN ADVANCE: The 28th-ranked LSU men's team (11-11) defeated No. 34 Rice (17-11) 4-0 at W.T. "Dub" Robinson Stadium to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, where they will take on Ole Miss.

--- Etc. ---

Xavier, LOYOLA ADD PLAYERS: Kevin Miller of Baton Rouge and Jimmy Williams of Milwaukee have signed men's basketball scholarships with Xavier. Miller is a 6-foot-3 guard and Williams a 6-8 forward. . . . Loyola cross country and track coach Andy Canegitta has signed his seventh and eighth recruits, Kieran Harper of Kings Park, N.Y., and Slidell native Jenna Knoblach, to his 2009 recruiting class.

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