The Texas Longhorns escaped Knoxville last weekend with a 20-17 win over No. 14 Tennessee in the SEC opener for both teams. Texas remained No. 1 in the latest AP Top 25 rankings after its second ranked win of the season.
It wasn’t pretty, but thanks to a historic 5.5-sack day from Texas defensive end Colin Simmons, the Longhorns got the job done.
But the Longhorns are showing that they’re not done with targeting more wins over the Volunteers. Texas is using its victory in Knoxville as a springboard to build some momentum with one of Tennessee’s top commits in the 2027 class.
Texas Offers Elite Tennessee JUCO Commit
Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian leaves the field at the half during a college football game against Tennessee on Sept. 26, 2026, in Knoxville, Tennessee. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Texas has offered Tennessee defensive lineman commit Christian Mays, who is the No. 2 overall player at the JUCO ranks in the 2027 cycle, per 247Sports’ rankings. He got to see just how elite Texas’ defensive line is and what the future could hold for him if he were to flip to the Longhorns.
A product of Northeast Mississippi Community College, Mays stands at an impressive 6-5, 340 pounds and is the No. 1 defensive lineman in 247’s JUCO rankings. He started off at Bear Creek High School in Lakewood, CO before heading to Northeast Mississippi, where he posted 17 tackles, five tackles for loss, and one sack across eight games as a true freshman in 2025.
Mays has started to reel in offers from programs like Georgia, Mississippi State, Colorado, Auburn, Arkansas, North Texas and Louisiana Tech. It’s safe to say that more teams will join this list as the season treads on.
Mays announced the Texas offer on social media two days after the Longhorns’ win over Tennessee.
“After a great conversation with coach Kenny Baker I am blessed to have earned a scholarship offer from The University of Texas,” Mays wrote on X.
After a great conversation with @CoachK_Baker I am blessed to have earned a scholarship offer from The University of Texas #AGTG #GodDid #Blessed @TexasFootball @nemcc_football @coach_stigers @coachcannon97 @CoachGDavisFB pic.twitter.com/NQ5KgdKRlF
— Christian Mays (@ChristianMays23) September 28, 2026
It’s obvious that the Texas coaching staff wanted to use the momentum from the Tennessee win to build some chemistry with recruits, as they should. Nothing helps build an elite recruiting class quite like stacking wins, and doing so in front of the raucous crowd at Neyland Stadium takes championship-level qualities that recruits are drawn to.
Under Steve Sarkisian, the Longhorns haven’t targeted the JUCO ranks with too much aggressiveness over the past handful of seasons, but it’s clear they see potential in Mays.
Time will tell if Mays stays committed to Tennessee or entertains flipping to Texas.
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