Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs just made life harder for the Tennessee Vols
The Tennessee Vols and the Georgia Bulldogs are often fighting for the same recruits.
Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs made life a little tougher on the Tennessee Vols over the weekend.
One of the Vols’ top recruiting targets is 2027 four-star linebacker Kenneth Simon II, the son of former Tennessee linebacker Kevin Simon.
Simon, 6-foot-2/190 pounds from Brentwood, TN, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 7 linebacker in the nation and the No. 6 overall player in the state of Tennessee. He’s also rated as the No. 131 overall player in the 2027 recruiting class.
247Sports recruiting insider Tom Loy noted last week that Tennessee feels good about its chances of landing Simon.
“Sources around the Vols believe they are firmly in the mix to land his commitment and keep Simon home,” wrote Loy. “Tennessee sources aren’t getting too confident yet, but they believe they are very much a top contender to get this one done.”
It’s no surprise that Tennessee is a frontrunner to land Simon, considering his family connection to the Vols. But a trip to Athens this past weekend suddenly has the Bulldogs very much in the mix to land the four-star linebacker.
Kenneth Simon II says Georgia has moved up in his recruitment
Simon told On3 that Georgia has “moved up just as much as anybody else” in his recruitment.
The Tennessee native specifically mentioned that he spent a lot of time with linebackers coach Glenn Schumann.
“Me and Coach Schumann spent the majority of the time together,” said Simon to On3. “We went and ate dinner one night and then on Sunday, we probably sat and watched five and a half hours of tape. We watched game tape and practice film. Coach Schumann was doing a lot of teaching.”
“They made me feel like a heavy priority and really cared for my family as well,” added Simon. “Since I left, it’s been a pretty consistent feeling that they moved up just as much as anybody else I’m looking at.”
It still feels like Tennessee is the team to beat in this recruiting battle — especially since Simon has connected well with new Vols defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.
But Georgia is a juggernaut, and you can never rule them out in any recruiting battle. The Vols will need to keep pushing the gas in this recruiting battle — the last thing they need to do is allow Smart and the Bulldogs an opportunity to swipe Simon out of their backyard.
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