We've got to be honest - we did not see this coming. The Tennessee football team can now say it has three 5-star commits on board for the 2026 class. This one, however, is a pledge that will probably have people pretty darn speechless for the rest of the week.
For a while, the assumption had been that 5-star athlete Salesi Moa was going to stay home and suit up for the Utah Utes. That's not going to happen, as moments ago the 6-2, 190-pounder announced live with CBS Sports that he'll instead be SEC-bound to play for the Vols and Josh Heupel. Boom!
5-star ATH Salesi Moa commits to Tennessee in a huge recruiting win for Josh Heupel
Take a bow, Mr. Heupel. Moa indeed is a monster get for the head coach and his staff. Throughout his recruitment, Moa picked up 21 total offers, but he was down to five finalists: Tennessee, Utah, Washington, Michigan State and Michigan.
According to the 247Sports Composite, he's ranked five stars, the No. 2 athlete in the country, the No. 1 player from Utah and No. 31 prospect nationally. Yeah, he's an electric playmaker on both sides of the ball and he'll look to make an immediate impact as soon as he gets to Knoxville.
According to Tennessee reporter Ryan Callahan, Moa will play either safety or receiver at the next level, but he and the Vols coaches have spoken about him focusing on offense when he first makes the move to campus. Could end up playing both ways like Boo Carter? Who knows.
What we do know is that Moa has incredible speed and he's one of the top standouts in the country for the 2026 class. He joins quarterback Faizon Brandon and offensive tackle Gabriel Osenda as the 5-star pledges on board for Heupel and Tennessee. Might Savion Hiter and Tristen Keys add their names to that list at some point this summer? That's also in the cards.