Tennessee football battle for 5-star RB with Michigan now has an end date

Will it be Tennessee football or Michigan for one of the top uncommitted prospects left on the board for the 2026 cycle? We're going to find out soon enough, as a decision date has finally arrived for running back Savion Hiter.

While Hiter has consistently said that he's down to four schools, the belief is that this is a two-way race between Josh Heupel and Sherrone Moore for the elite RB prospect. On Friday, Hiter revealed that he's ready to shut down his recruitment soon enough, with his final decision coming on Aug. 19. Will the Vols come out on top, or will Michigan be celebrating after his choice is announced?

5-star Tennessee football target Savion Hiter will announce his decision Aug. 19

In less than a month, and about 10 days before Tennessee takes the field against Syracuse, everyone will have the answer they've been waiting on. For a while now, the Vols and Heupel have been making a big move to try and land Hiter.

On top of that, 5-star quarterback commit Faizon Brandon has also been helping out recruiting wise. Brandon has been in Tristen Keys' ear about a potential flip from LSU to Tennessee too. Adding Hiter to the 2026 class with fellow 5-star playmakers Brandon and Gabriel Osenda would be unreal.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Hiter is ranked five stars, the No. 1 running back in the country, No. 1 player from Virginia and No. 9 player nationally for the 2026 class. He's going to be a force at the next level, there's no doubt about that.

However, what no one knows is if he'll be playing his college ball in Knoxville or Ann Arbor. Come mid August, we'll find out for sure. Michigan has been rumored to be in the lead, but Tennessee is doing everything in its power to catch up. Things could go either way. Let's see if Heupel can send a message to the rest of the country by reeling Hiter in.