MOULTRIE — Jack Luttrell’s short time at Colquitt County was made even briefer on Tuesday.

The Packers’ versatile safety/return specialist and punter honored his July 2021 commitment to play football at the University of Tennessee when he took advantage of the NCAA’s early signing period and signed with the resurgent SEC program at a ceremony at the high school.

Luttrell has fulfilled his requirements for high school graduation and will be in Knoxville to join the 10-2 No. 6 Tennessee football team as it prepares for its Dec. 30 Orange Bowl game against Clemson.

He will not be eligible to play in the bowl, but is looking forward to the opportunity for a head start to his college football career.

Luttrell will begin taking classes and working on a degree in mechanical engineering in January.

Luttrell came to Colquitt County last summer when his father Stan Luttrell joined head coach Sean Calhoun’s first Packers football staff to work with the outside linebackers and lead the strength and conditioning program.

Jack played the two previous seasons for Hebron Christian School and made an immediate impact at Colquitt County, helping lead the Packers to a 13-1 record.

“Moving to a new school as a senior can be challenging, emotional and exciting,” Calhoun said. “He felt all those emotions. But he fought through it.”

Calhoun calls Luttrell “a true athlete.”

“He’s a starting safety who also was our punter and returned punts and kickoffs,” Calhoun said. “You don’t see that much in Class 7A football.”

His combination of “savvy and smarts” led him to being named Region 1-7A’s Utility Athlete of the Year, Calhoun said.

His stats reflect the impact he had on the team this season.

Luttrell averaged 35 yards as the Packers’ punter and nine of his punts were downed inside the 20.

He averaged 526 yards on 16 kickoff returns and 189 yards on 22 punt returns.

His 50-yard punt return for a touchdown against Carrollton in the state semifinal game gave the Packers a brief second-quarter lead.

He also had 102 tackles, including five for losses; one interception, which he returned for a touchdown; eight pass breakups; a sack; a fumble recovery; and two quarterback pressures.

Luttrell brought a solid resume to Moultrie.

He was an All-Region 8-5A honorable mention selection in 2019; was a first-team All-Region and an honorable mention all-state selection as a sophomore at Hebron Christian; and was the region’s Athlete of the Year and an All-State selection as a kick returner and defensive back as a junior.

And with his 3.409 grade point average, “Jack fully embodies the definition of a student-athlete,” Calhoun said.

Luttrell said leaving Hebron Christian for Colquitt County this year was difficult.

“But the people here made it real easy for me,” he said.

And he noted how much success the Packers had this year.

Not only did they win 13 straight games and reach the state semifinals, the Packers won 18 straight 7-on-7 contests to claim the titles of the competitions at the University of Georgia and Roswell High.

He said his time in Moultrie “seems like a blur to me.”

Stan Luttrell, who is from Knoxville, said his son is “ready to be there (at Tennessee). and they are ready to have him.”

Jack is the third of Stan and Kim’s children to be a college athlete.

Brother Tre is a quarterback at Carson Newman and sister Anna is on the rowing team at Clemson.

Younger sister Lynnsey made it to Moultrie in time last spring to join the Lady Packers soccer team as a freshman.

And youngest sister Isobel is a member of the Olympic development team in soccer.

Kim Luttrell is also working as an assistant coach in the Colquitt County girls soccer program.