Tennessee football defensive coordinator Tim Banks thought he may have found a solid cornerback in the transfer portal when Jermod McCoy popped on his radar.

Banks liked the ball skills and athleticism that McCoy flashed on game film at Oregon State. But the portal can be a crapshoot.

Then McCoy visited Tennessee's campus, and Banks’ eyes widened a little more.

“I would be lying if I told you we knew right away, but you say that for any portal kid,” Banks said. “I think the thing that really jumped out was how big he was when we got a chance to see him up close in person. We saw the ball skills on tape. We saw the fluidity in which he played with.

“But for me personally, it was just his overall size. Once we saw him, we thought this kid had a chance to be special.”

Granted, McCoy isn’t enormous. But his agility suggested he was smaller than his 6-foot, 193-pound frame.

The combination of McCoy’s talent and size was enough to sell the Vols on his potential as an SEC cornerback. And, boy, has that bet paid off.

According to Pro Football Focus, McCoy has the highest grade in pass coverage of any player in the SEC who’s played at least 20 snaps of pass defense.

No. 4 Tennessee (4-0, 1-0 SEC) plays Arkansas (3-2, 1-1) on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET) in Fayetteville.

The Vols will enter that game ranked No. 1 nationally in total defense (176 yards per game) and No. 2 in scoring defense (7 points per game). Their deep defensive line has played a big part in that.

But McCoy’s ascension has been a key contributor, making him one of the best portal gems of 2024.

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Jermod McCoy is among SEC's biggest portal impact players

Every SEC team made a key addition from the portal.

Quarterbacks like Arkansas’ Tayven Green (Boise State), Kentucky’s Brock Vandagriff (Georgia) and Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia (New Mexico State) are obvious impact transfers.

Ole Miss rebuilt its roster with transfers wide receiver Juice Wells (South Carolina), defensive linemen Walter Nolen (Texas A&M) and edge rusher Princely Umanmielen (Florida).

Texas got wide receiver Isaiah Bond (Alabama). Texas A&M got pass rusher Nic Scourton (Purdue). South Carolina got running back Rocket Sanders (Arkansas). Georgia got running back Trevor Etienne (Florida). Alabama got safety Keon Sabb (Michigan).

And the list goes on and on.

But McCoy belongs with all of them as the most impactful portal players, at least from the early portion of the season.

His position is part of the equation. The most coveted players are usually quarterbacks, offensive tackles, pass rushers and lockdown cornerbacks.

In other words, teams want elite quarterbacks. And after that, they value the players who protect quarterbacks and players who counter the impact of quarterbacks.

McCoy has excelled in the latter category.

According to Pro Football Focus, a receiver covered by McCoy has been targeted 16 times and made eight receptions for only 39 yards (4.9 yards per catch). McCoy has broken up three passes and made one interception.

“I’m playing with a lot of confidence right now,” McCoy said.

Why Jermod McCoy thought he should've been in SEC all along

Coaches and teammates describe McCoy as even-keeled. But he definitely plays with a burning desire to prove that he belongs in the SEC.

“I felt like I could always play at this level,” McCoy said. “Coming out of high school, I thought I should’ve been here.”

McCoy was a high school wide receiver who signed with Oregon State, the only power conference school that offered him a scholarship in the 2023 class.

But after moving to cornerback as a freshman, he caught on quickly and entered the portal after his freshman season. He chose Tennessee over Texas A&M, Auburn, Oregon, Washington and other schools.

It’s hard to find many success stories better than McCoy. But he’s only four games into his Vols tenure, and he hasn’t faced a prolific passing attack yet.

Arkansas has a top 30 passing offense with renowned offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino calling the plays.

Later in the season, McCoy will face Heisman Trophy candidate quarterbacks in Alabama’s Jalen Milroe and Georgia’s Carson Beck. That’ll be the true test of his first-year impact, but so far he’s been everything the Vols hoped he’d be.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee football: Jermod McCoy could be SEC’s best portal prize