Tennessee Vols notch major recruiting win over Florida Gators and Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon

It's never a bad day when you're able to top two of your rivals, and that's just what Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Vols did on Saturday afternoon.

2025 Lyons, GA safety Lagonza Hayward committed to the Volunteers on Saturday afternoon over the Florida Gators and Georgia Bulldogs.

The 6'1", 205-pound safety from Toombs County High school fits an area of desperate need for Heupel and the Vols: secondary.  The four-star defender checks in as a consensus Top 100 player per On3 Sports' Industry rankings , as well as consensus top 10 safety in the country (#9).  On3 Sports has him a little bit higher than some other sites, listing him as the #75 overall player, #4 safety, and #11 player in the state of Georgia.

There's no other way to put it.  Hayward is the type of player that makes a difference between potentially good teams and great ones.  But then again, that's typically the case with top 100 recruits.  Five stars, blue chips, top 100 players, you name it.  Landing recruits in those categories is what makes all the difference in taking your program to the next level.

Hayward chose the Vols over offers from Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Florida State, Texas A&M, South Carolina, Missouri, and USC, among many others. He becomes the second safety in the Vols' 2025 recruiting class, joining three-star commit Sidney Walton from Moody, AL.

The Vols now stand at 19 overall commitments and now sit at 11th nationally in On3 Sports' team recruiting rankings for 2025 after Hayward's pledge.

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