Tennessee falls behind in battle for key recruit, but the Vols still have an ace in the hole
Earlier this spring, On3's Steve Wiltfong predicted that the Tennessee Vols will win the recruiting battle for 2025 four-star safety Lagonza Hayward. Hayward, 6-foot-1/200 lbs from Lyons, GA, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 6 safety in the nation and the No. 11 player in the state of Georgia. He's also rated as the […]
Earlier this spring, On3's Steve Wiltfong predicted that the Tennessee Vols will win the recruiting battle for 2025 four-star safety Lagonza Hayward.
Hayward, 6-foot-1/200 lbs from Lyons, GA, is rated by 247Sports as the No. 6 safety in the nation and the No. 11 player in the state of Georgia. He's also rated as the No. 82 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class.
Wiltfong wasn't alone in his prediction. The majority of the recruiting industry had Hayward penciled in as a future Vol commit for most of the winter/spring months.
Recent visits to Georgia and South Carolina, however, had muddied the waters a bit in the battle for Hayward.
On3's Chad Simmons suggested on Monday that South Carolina now has the momentum for Hayward after his official visit to Columbia this past weekend.
"As it stands right now, the Gamecocks have grabbed that momentum away from Georgia and Tennessee," said Simmons.
Hayward is set to announce his commitment on July 27, which means this recruiting battle is nearing its conclusion.
Fortunately for the Vols, they still have an ace in the hole that could help swing the momentum in their favor before Hayward announces his commitment in late June.
As of now, Tennessee is scheduled to receive Hayward's final official visit before he makes his decision (Hayward visits Florida this weekend before visiting Tennessee on June 21).
It seems like the momentum in this battle has shifted based on official visits. Considering the Vols were the leaders in this recruiting battle for most of the spring, it seems fair to suggest that the momentum could swing back toward Tennessee after Hayward's final official visit later this month.
That doesn't mean that Tennessee is for sure going to win this battle. But if I had to make a bet right now on where Hayward commits, I'd put my money on the Vols.
