Tennessee basketball will see a familiar face during SEC play this season. B.J. Edwards, the former Knoxville Catholic star who played one season with the Vols in 2022, is using an extra year of eligibility to play for Oklahoma, he told On3 on Aug. 13.
The Vols play at Oklahoma for their lone meeting of the regular season on either Feb. 9 or 10.
Edwards exhausted his eligibility after four seasons. But he joined a lawsuit with 16 other basketball players from Tennessee in a lawsuit in state court, hoping to earn an extra season of college eligibility in line with the NCAA's new 5 in 5 rule. On July 31, Edwards and his fellow plaintiffs were granted a temporary injunction that would allow them to play during the 2026-27 season.
The order handed down by a Tennessee state court required the NCAA to open a new transfer window for this group of athletes from the class of 2022. The window for entering the transfer portal was open from Aug. 3-10. The order did not exempt schools from the roster limit of 15 players, so Edwards could have only joined a team that had anticipated kept a spot in reserve.
Former Vanderbilt center Jalen Washington, who joined Tennessee's roster this month, was also a plaintiff in that same lawsuit.
While awaiting a ruling in state court, Edwards was not picked in the 2026 NBA Draft but did sign a contract with the Sacramento Kings and played in the NBA Summer League. He averaged 2.4 points across five appearances.
Edwards, who committed to Tennessee as a four-star recruit, transferred to SMU following his freshman year. He was star for the Mustangs as they reached the NCAA Tournament's First Four last season. As a senior, he averaged 12.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and an ACC-leading 2.3 steals per game while shooting 37.2% from 3-point range.
Stephen Thompson covers Tennessee Volunteers men's basketball. Email him at stephen.thompson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @stephenethom.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee basketball will face former Vols guard B.J. Edwards at Oklahoma