What is it with Steve Sarkisian trying to throw sand in the wound here? For plenty of fans, the sting of Tennessee losing 20-17 to No. 1 Texas in Week 4 hasn't gotten any better. Now, Sark is trying to make life even worse for Josh Heupel, as he has wasted no time trying to flip Tennessee defensive line commit Christian Mays.
Just two days after taking down the Vols in Knoxville, Sarkisian is using part of his celebrations to see if he can entice Mays to suit up for the other UT instead. Texas officially offered the 6-5, 340-pounder, and it's certainly a talking point. The timing of said offer sure isn't a coincidence either.
#Texas offers top JUCO DL and Tennessee commit https://t.co/aQ12GfKiWW https://t.co/hGZilbM2pu
— Hank South (@HankSouthOTF) September 29, 2026
Texas trying to flip Tennessee commit Christian Mays is something for Josh Heupel to worry about
So, how nervous should Heupel and his staff be right now with Texas now in the mix? While Mays has said he's locked in with the Vols, the No. 1 team in the country putting a scholarship on the table is never going to be nothing to sneeze at. Again, Sark doing this right after beating Tennessee is pretty eye-opening too.
Mays originally committed to Tennessee back on June 6. Throughout his recruitment, the Northeast Mississippi Community College standout has picked up 21 offers, with Tennessee, Texas, Georgia, and many other top programs on his list. For now, it's too early to tell if this tender from the Longhorns is going to mix things up for him or not, but it's certainly going to be something to keep a close eye on moving forward.
As of this writing, Heupel holds 19 commits for his '27 class - said class is currently ranked No. 21 in the country per the 247Sports Composite. Mays is easily the biggest playmaker on the defensive side of the ball, as you just can't teach 340 pounds, with great hips and movement. There's a reason Mays is ranked four stars and the No. 2 JUCO prospect overall.
For a while now, it had seemed like a lock that Mays was going to make things official with the Vols during the Early Signing Period, but now the Longhorns are ready to shoot their shot. More worry will come if Mays makes the trip to Austin for an official visit this fall.
Heupel should probably schedule another visit to Knoxville for him too, as the last thing Tennessee's staff wants to see is Mays end up joining an SEC foe instead. This could end up being a nothing burger once early December gets here, but it could also lead to more deflating news for the Vols at the hands of Texas and Sark. Let's hope it ends up being the former in this case.
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