Schools to Watch After No. 1 JUCO DE Jonathan Kongbo Decommits from Tennessee

Tennessee’s 2016 recruiting class suffered a major hit on Tuesday evening when 4-star JUCO defensive end Jonathan Kongbo announced his decommitment from the Vols, via his Twitter account.

As Wes Rucker of 247Sports detailed, Kongbo’s stock has been rising in recent weeks.

He’s already taken official visits to Auburn, Ole Miss and Tennessee. He has a trip scheduled to Washington on Jan. 22. But as Rucker notes, a host of other programs are fighting to get him on campus for his final official visit.

He’s slated to make a final decision on national signing day, but which schools are the ones to watch with Kongbo moving forward?

Among the schools Rucker notes who are trying to land his last official visit are Alabama, Florida State, Oregon and USC.

Kongbo recently spoke with Ruth Robbins of 247Sports on the challenges that his expanding list has created in terms of arriving at a conclusion.

"I have the visit to Washington locked in (Jan. 15), but there's so many schools now that I'm going to have to call some and say 'thank you but no thank you,’” Kongbo explained to Robbins. “I'm going to be sifting through these programs—right now I don't know who's in or who's out for that last visit."

The Huskies could become a factor since he’s originally from British Columbia—which is roughly a two-hour drive from Seattle.

The Tide are making a strong push after offering Kongbo last month.

Tide defensive line coach Bo Davis is leading the charge in trying to lure Kongbo to Tuscaloosa.

"(Davis) told me about the opportunity that was at Alabama," Kongbo told BamaOnline, via 247Sports' Hank South. "He talked about how he plays all his D-linemen and that I had to chance to be in the rotation and earn some minutes.”

Another perennial power on the recruiting trail in the mix with Kongbo is Florida State. 

As Josh Newberg of Noles247 detailed, Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher personally informed Kongbo of his offer to play for him in Tallahassee.

"

Blessed to receive an offer from the University of Southern California! #FightOn #PAC12 pic.twitter.com/nObHTlZbYq

— Jonathan Kongbo III (@King_Kongbo) January 5, 2016"

“[FSU is] definitely a nice offer and maybe a school I want to visit. I have two visits left and I’m looking at Alabama, Oregon, Washington and now Florida State,” Kongbo told Newberg. “That would kinda be my top four of who I want to see.”

The Ducks are another program whose proximity on the West Coast could help them reel in Kongbo, but it’s likely that his decision will come down to the schools he makes his official visits to.

That means that the battle to land his final official visit, which would occur on the final weekend before signing day, could swing the pendulum in Kongbo’s recruitment to the school that is able to get him on campus that weekend.

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand and all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.