It’s officially July and college football is right around the corner. The month of July is an important one on the recruiting front for the Tennessee Vols and the pursuit of their top recruiting target. 

Five-star RB David Gabriel Georges will announce his commitment on July 22 with the options being Tennessee, Ohio State, and Ole Miss. 

All official visits have taken place, and we are now in a dead period. No in-person visits will be taken, but final pitches will still be made in the big-time recruitment. 

Tennessee has to offer David Gabriel Georges a multi-year contract on the NIL front 

When recruiting a player like DGG, who could step in tomorrow and be the starting running back for most teams in college football, it isn’t going to be cheap. Tennessee knows it, Ohio State knows it, and Ole Miss knows it. Thanks to a recent report from On3’s Pete Nakos, we now have some clarity on what will be needed on the financial front to land Gabriel Georges. 

“He’s expected to be in the $1 million range, shy of $2 million,” a source with knowledge of the recruitment said, via On3. “It will be a multi-year deal, that’s something the family has talked about. The family is very clear that it wants a multi-year deal, so they have a roadmap for his entire career.”

A lot of the deals we see out of high school are front-loaded one-year deals, then both sides will reevaluate after the first year. Gabriel Georges wants some security in his deal, and there’s nothing wrong with a high-profile recruit that’s not likely to bust requesting a deal of multiple years.  

We’re likely looking at a $4-6 million deal with it being multiple years. If Gabriel Georges comes in and hits the ground running as a major difference maker right away, it’ll be more than worth it. If he’s able to help be a key part of Tennessee’s football team that gets them over the hump and back into the College Football Playoff, it’ll be seen as a bargain. 

It’s just about crunch time for Tennessee in its chase of David Gabriel Georges

Tennessee and Ohio State are seen as the two schools at the top of the race for DGG, with Ole Miss being third. The nation’s No. 2 running back has been recruited by both schools, and his relationship with Josh Heupel is the best out of the three head coaches. The predictions still lean Ohio State’s way, but it truly feels like a coin flip right now. 

The Vols should have no problem committing to a multi-year deal with Gabriel Georges. There’s certainly no reason to let that be a hurdle with how hard they’ve recruited him. July 22 couldn’t come any sooner so that we can get this whole thing over with, but the Vols should feel good about where they’re at right now in the battle.