Tennessee’s pursuit of 2027 five-star EDGE DJ Jacobs, an Ohio State commit since last December, has Buckeyes fans in panic mode.

The Vols showed this summer by landing five-star running back David Gabriel Georges over the Buckeyes that they can win a head-to-head battle with Ohio State for a top recruit (UT also beat out Ohio State for five-star offensive lineman David Sanders Jr during the 2025 recruiting cycle).

So while Buckeyes fans would typically be dismissive of Tennessee’s efforts, they now realize that Josh Heupel and company are a real threat.

Tennessee is in a good position to possibly flip DJ Jacobs later this year

VolQuest’s Austin Price joined WNML’s Josh and Swain on Wednesday and he was asked for the latest update on Jacobs.

Price shared some thoughts on Jacobs that have Tennessee fans feeling hopeful (and Ohio State fans feeling nervous).

“We’ll see when he gets to campus — I do expect him to visit sometime this fall,” said Price. “But I think it’ll be a low key type of deal. He is not one to want a lot of attention. That’s just not how he operates. And I think ultimately Rodney Garner’s relationship here will pay off. I just think it’s going to be something that happens organically. It’s going to happen on DJ’s time, and of course the younger brother (2028 four-star DL Dawson Jacobs) as well.

“But I still feel like Tennessee’s in a good spot here — as good a spot as you can be in with a kid who’s committed somewhere else. The relationship with Rodney Garner — and not just with DJ, but with the entire family — will stand the test of time. You just have to let it continue to play out.”

Price obviously isn’t making any kind of prediction there — you just never know in recruiting these days — but it definitely sounds like Tennessee is very much in this fight (and let’s not forget that Price was all over the Gabriel Georges recruitment when many others dismissed the idea of Tennessee landing the stud running back).

There are plenty of reasons for Tennessee fans to feel optimistic about the pursuit of DJ Jacobs

Jacobs’ father played for Vols defensive line coach Rodney Garner at Georgia, and he said earlier this summer that Garner is “like a father”.

Additionally, On3’s Steve Wiltfong said late last month that Jacobs “hasn’t closed the door” on other programs.

“I think that they’ll be inside Neyland Stadium this season for four-star Dawson Jacobs’ recruitment,” said Wiltfong. “Tennessee, they’re a team that is exciting going into the season. What kind of season are they going to have? We know the Buckeyes, their track record of success, and what they do for their players off the field as well — they didn’t land this commitment by accident. They check a lot of boxes.

“I think that Tennessee’s performance on the field this year is pivotal as they try and make a push here for DJ Jacobs moving forward. He’s going to be at Ohio State a few times this season. And in recently talking to his dad, the priority is to get him back up to Columbus — around the players and around the recruits — and continue to get comfortable. But they have not shut the door on other programs or on where this process could take them from now until the early signing period in December. And Tennessee is one of the programs that they’re watching.“

I’m sure Ohio State fans will try to dismiss the Jacobs to Tennessee talk on social media, but just because someone is whistling past the graveyard doesn’t mean they’re as confident as they look.