BREAKING: Emily Covert to Tennessee as Grad Transfer Starting This Winter

Earlier today, The Stride Report confirmed that Emily Covert will be finishing her eligibility at the University of Tennessee as a graduate transfer starting this winter. The former Colorado runner is expected to hold one season of cross country eligibility and multiple seasons of eligibility on the track.

Covert’s cross country resume has been loaded. She has finished as high as 31st place at the cross country national meet (in the fall of 2021), was the bronze medalist at the 2022 PAC-12 XC Championships and was the silver medalist at the 2021 PAC-12 XC Championships. She was also the 4th place finisher in the 10k at the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Championships.

On the track, she has run times of 9:04 (3k), 15:35 (5k) and 32:30 (10k).

On paper, signing Covert is a monumental transfer win for the Tennessee women. This past fall, the Volunteers stunned the nation by not only qualifying for the cross country national meet, but by also finishing an Earth-shaking 6th place at the NCAA XC Championships.

With numerous women throughout that Tennessee lineup holding underclassman eligibility, and everyone from that team set to return, the Volunteers were already set to enter the 2024 cross country season as a major team to watch.

However, with Covert now on their roster, the idea of this group potentially making a push for the podium seems within reach. Had the women in orange had Covert for the 2023 national meet, Tennessee would have placed 5th overall, less than 10 points out from the fourth and final podium spot.

While depth was certainly not an issue for Tennessee last fall, the need for greater firepower was certainly apparent. Ashley Jones emerged as the team's lead scorer at the national meet with a 42nd place finish, although the Lady Vols' lineup featured no All-Americans.

If Covert is healthy and firing on all cylinders, then the former Boulder-based veteran will bring a key injection of scoring potency to a team that needs it in order to contend for the podium. And with much of Tennessee's roster only expected to get better, having an elder and experienced presence within the team's top-seven should, in theory, only offer greater stability moving forward.