Georgia has ventured into Tennessee to land one of the nation’s top football recruits.
Jared Curtis, a five-star quarterback from Nashville Christian School, has committed to Georgia, Tennessee’s SEC rival.
Curtis is ranked as the No. 8 overall prospect in the country, the top player in Tennessee, and the No. 4 quarterback in the 2026 class.
His decision came down to Georgia and Oregon, a Big Ten program, but he ultimately chose to stay within the SEC and return to the Bulldogs.
Curtis was previously committed to Georgia from March 23 to October 17, 2024, before reopening his recruitment. He reaffirmed his commitment to UGA on May 5, 2025.
Despite being from Tennessee, the Volunteers were never major players in his recruitment. That’s largely because they had already secured a commitment from their top quarterback target.
Faizon Brandon, a five-star QB, committed to Tennessee on August 3, 2024. He holds the top quarterback ranking in the 2026 class according to Rivals and is the No. 2 overall player.
Even after Rivals updated its rankings on Monday, Brandon retained his spot as the No. 1 quarterback.
With Brandon and Curtis ranked first and fourth respectively at their position, two other quarterbacks separate them. Ryder Lyons, the No. 2 QB from California, remains uncommitted, while Keisean Henderson, ranked third, has been committed to Houston since May 2024 after a rapid rise in the rankings.
Brandon and Curtis currently stand as the highest-rated quarterbacks set to join SEC programs. While Tennessee and Georgia have played annually since 1992, that tradition is in flux.
Due to the SEC’s shift to an eight-game rotation schedule following the addition of Texas and Oklahoma — and the removal of divisions — Tennessee and Georgia are not scheduled to meet in 2026 or 2027.
If the scheduling format doesn’t change, any potential clash between Brandon and Curtis might come later in their careers, once both are more likely to be starters. Discussions are ongoing about adding a ninth conference game, which would introduce three permanent opponents per team and could alter future matchups.
However, Tennessee’s likely permanent opponents are expected to be Vanderbilt, Alabama, Kentucky, or Florida — not Georgia.
Still, with Georgia’s dominant standing in the SEC, there remains the possibility that the Vols could face Curtis in postseason play, such as the SEC Championship or the College Football Playoff.
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