Chamberlain’s Dentarius Locke, the nation’s No. 1-ranked high school sprinter, said Wednesday night he has decided to honor his commitment to the University of Tennessee despite the retirement of Vols men’s coach Bill Webb.

“At this point, I’d be shocked if I didn’t wind up there,” Locke said. “I know I had other options but it’s getting close to the start of summer school and I need to start getting ready to leave. I want to be there and start classes the first week of July.”

Locke and his prep coach and mentor, Hansford Johnson, were going to request a release from Locke’s National Letter of Intent with Tennessee if the Vols did not keep Webb’s assistant, Norbert Elliott, on staff as the sprint coach. But Johnson says he has been in regular contact with Tennessee officials, who have given him everything short of a guarantee Elliott would be retained.

Johnson said he has his reservations about what the Vols will actually do with the restructuring of their track coaching staff. He had hoped Locke would consider other schools, including three-time NCAA champion Florida State. But Johnson said “Locke’s heart is with Tennessee” and doesn’t want to stand in his way.

“This [remaining with Tennessee] isn’t necessarily my first choice because I think there’s too much of a risk involved in waiting to see what they will do [with the staff],” Johnson said. “But he’s a young man and part of growing up is making your own decisions and dealing with the consequences, both good and bad.”

On the immediate horizon for Locke is this weekend’s Nike Outdoor Nationals, which are widely considered to be the high school national championships. The meet will be held in Greensboro, N.C., at North Carolina A&T University. Locke competes in the 100 on Friday and the 200 on Saturday.