Vols are not in the mix for a 5-star recruit set to announce his decision despite recent official visit to Tennessee
Despite recently hosting 2025 five-star edge rusher Jared Smith on an official visit, it appears the Tennessee Vols are not in the mix to land the talented recruit. Smith, 6-foot-6/235 lbs from Alabaster, AL, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 19 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class. The five-star edge rusher took an […]
Despite recently hosting 2025 five-star edge rusher Jared Smith on an official visit, it appears the Tennessee Vols are not in the mix to land the talented recruit.
Smith, 6-foot-6/235 lbs from Alabaster, AL, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 19 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class.
The five-star edge rusher took an official visit to Tennessee last month. Smith told GoVols247 that the Vols were "definitely at the top of my list" after the visit.
But according to On3, Smith will be choosing between Florida State, South Carolina, Georgia, Auburn, USC, and Ole Miss on August 3 when he announces his commitment.
South Carolina is considered the favorite for Smith with the Ole Miss Rebels not far behind.
The Vols have done a terrific job on the recruiting trail under Josh Heupel when it comes to landing elite pass rushers (James Pearce, Jordan Ross, 2025 four-star commit Ethan Utley). And Heupel and his staff have shown that they can get edge rushers to the NFL after Byron Young, who played for two seasons under Heupel, was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft (Young had a terrific rookie season, totaling eight sacks and 61 tackles).
Sometimes, a recruiting battle just doesn't go your way. And that was the case for the Vols with Smith. But Tennessee is still doing a tremendous job on the recruiting trail and we don't see the Vols' momentum slowing down anytime soon.
