Tennessee women's basketball faces a full-scale roster crisis this week, after all eight returning players entered the NCAA transfer portal.
Meanwhile, top recruit Oliviyah Edwards de-committed, leaving coach Kim Caldwell with just one incoming player going into the 2026/27 season.
Freshman guard Jaida Civil announced her NCAA transfer portal entry on Monday, as every Lady Vol with remaining eligibility fled the program after Tennessee's first-round NCAA tournament exit.
The mass exodus follows a 16-14 season that saw the Lady Vols lose eight straight games to end the year. Tennessee posted its longest losing streak in the modern era, while suffering seven losses by at least 15 points — the most in 40 years.
Edwards, the No. 2 recruit in the SC Next 100 Class of 2026, requested her release after turning down USC, South Carolina, LSU, and Florida to join Tennessee women's basketball last November. Until she de-committed, the 6-foot-3 McDonald's All American ranked as Caldwell's highest-ranked recruit.
"At this time, with all the current changes to the women's basketball team, I believe it's in my daughter's best interest to part ways and reopen her recruitment," Edwards' mother Jordan West told ESPN.
NCAA transfer portal departures include starting guard Talaysia Cooper, freshman twins Mia and Mya Pauldo, senior Alyssa Latham, sophomore Kaniya Boyd, and freshmen Deniya Prawl and Lauren Hurst. Four graduating seniors — Zee Spearman, Janiah Barker, Nya Robertson, and Jersey Wolfenbarger — complete the turnover.
Caldwell dismissed senior Ruby Whitehorn mid-season following a marijuana arrest. Meanwhile, senior Kaiya Wynn left after a Senior Day tiff with Caldwell, posting that she had reached her "breaking point" at Tennessee.
Tennessee retains only No. 62 recruit Gabby Minus ahead of the 2026/27 NCAA season. Following Edwards' departure, the team's recruiting class subsequently dropped from No. 10 to outside the Top 25.
