Top DL spurns Georgia, commits to SEC rival instead of Bulldogs

Recruiting experts have been hyping up college football fans across the country as they are expecting many elite recruits to announce their commitments this weekend. And that is what happened on Saturday with four-star defensive lineman Vodney Cleveland.

Georgia hosted Cleveland on an official visit at the beginning of June, but that visit clearly wasn't good enough for Cleveland as he announced his commitment to Texas on Saturday.

Top DL chooses Texas over Georgia

According to On3, Cleveland chose the Longhorns over Georgia, Florida and North Carolina.

This is a massive get for the Longhorns for multiple reasons, with the biggest being how highly ranked of a recruit Cleveland is. According to the 247Sports recruiting rankings, Cleveland is the No. 52 overall player in the country. He also is the No. 5 defensive lineman in the 2026 class and the No. 4 player from his home state of Alabama.

On top of that, beating this many elite programs including many direct rivals of the Longhorns in the SEC is a big win for their program as well.

What does this loss mean for Georgia?

This is a realy tough loss for Georgia because Cleveland could have helped wrap up the defensive line class for Georgia this cycle. The Bulldogs do already hold commitments on the defensive line from Carter Luckie and Seven Cloud, and while they are both very strong commits for Georgia, the Bulldogs are still missing that elite defensive lineman they look to land every cycle.

Cleveland would have fit this mold to perfection, but unfortunately Georgia is gong to have to find that player elsewhere.

The recruiting board for Georgia at defensive line is getting a little thin, so it is unclear where Kirby Smart and his staff will turn next. But this is a position where Georgia is going to need to add at least one more commit if not two, so Smart and his staff have their work cut out for them.