'They completely stopped talking to me' – Former Vols commit doesn't hold back while explaining why he didn't sign with Tennessee
The Tennessee Vols ended the 2025 recruiting cycle with the No. 11 class in the nation. Tennessee signed an impressive group of players, including five-star offensive lineman David Sanders Jr, four-star defensive lineman Isaiah Campbell, and four-star wide receiver Travis Smith Jr, among others. One talented recruit the Vols didn't manage to sign was four-star […]
The Tennessee Vols ended the 2025 recruiting cycle with the No. 11 class in the nation.
Tennessee signed an impressive group of players, including five-star offensive lineman David Sanders Jr, four-star defensive lineman Isaiah Campbell, and four-star wide receiver Travis Smith Jr, among others.
One talented recruit the Vols didn't manage to sign was four-star defensive back Lagonza Hayward.
Hayward, who was rated by On3 as the No. 3 safety in the nation and the No. 35 overall player in the 2025 class, was committed to Tennessee for four months, but he decommitted from the Vols just before the start of the early signing period in early December.
The Georgia native signed with the Florida Gators three days after decommitting from Tennessee.
Hayward recently joined Najeh Wilkins for a conversation about his football journey and he spoke extensively about decommitting from Tennessee.
Hayward told Wilkins that Tennessee stopped talking to him before the early signing period while also suggesting he was dealt "a bad hand of cards".
"Honestly it was like, the whole situation kept happening, I kept catching several….miscommunications,” explained Hayward. “I ain’t going to down talk nobody. It was several miscommunications…then they (Tennessee) stopped talking to me the week leading up to signing day. They completely stopped talking to me. So I’m a 17 year old kid about to sign and y’all completely stop talking to me. And then [Florida] never stopped talking to me. Even when I committed to Tennessee, they kept applying pressure. So I was like man, you know what, I’m decommitting. Because I’m not going to lie, I went down there the same day after I decommitted, took my phone out and powered it off, I didn’t want to hear nothing. Because you wasn’t talking to me then, why you talking to me now? So I left it like that. And I’m at where I’m at now."
“They just dealt me a bad hand of cards and I just had to play it," continued Hayward. "The game got played and it didn’t work out [the way] they wanted it to. And they was mad because it was like, you can’t treat me like a priority this whole time and then they get closer and closer to me having to come there and you stop caring about me.
“Honestly, me decommitting showed me what it was with Tenenssee fans. If you seen my posts and you went in the comments, Tennessee fans hated me when I decommitted. Because it was like, y’all gotta understand I’m a 17 year old kid and I’m still learning as I go. It ain’t like I know everything. This is my first time living life, too. Just like it’s y’all’s. So I’m learning as I go. And then treat me like a priority the whole time — I’ve done went up in rankings….it was so bad, I’m having to buy my own gear….it’s like, I shouldn’t have to beg for gear to a school I’m committed to. And I’m like a four-star. So I was confused. And I didn’t say anything about it, I just kept doing my thing. And then they just stopped talking to me. So I was like, man, what am I supposed to do? Because I don’t even know if they still want me for real, or where I stand on their board. And then I found out that (Vols defensive coordinator Tim Banks) Banks was thinking about getting a head coaching job. So I was like I can’t even do it because that’s a bad situation, going to a DC that I think I know and then he leaves and it’s a new DC and my playing time is up for grabs. So if I don’t really know him and he doesn’t know me, so I got a bad hand of cards. So I went with the one I felt best with. I decommitted and went to Florida. I was messing with Florida the whole time too, though."
“So I just went with the best fit for me," added Hayward. "I understand Tennessee fans think I’m ‘wrong’ for making a switch, [but] I gotta make the best decision for me and my family at the end of the day. I get what you would do if you were in my shoes, but you’re not in my shoes.”
Only Hayward and the coaches at Tennessee know exactly how things went down behind the scenes. Hayward's side of the story certainly doesn't paint Tennessee in a great light. And it definitely doesn't sound like Hayward is questioning his decision to sign with Florida over Tennessee.
Recruiting can be a cut-throat world. Schools drop recruits, recruits drop schools, and moves happen quickly. Fortunately for Hayward, he landed in a good spot at Florida.
As for his comments about the Vols, his experience doesn't exactly match up with what we've heard from other recruits, but it's important to remember that every recruitment is unique. Just because one recruit had a bad experience with a program, doesn't mean the same will be true for every recruit.
