Is Jared Curtis flipping to Vanderbilt football? What we know

Will Jared Curtis flip his commitment from Georgia to Vanderbilt football?

Vanderbilt and coach Clark Lea's courtship of the nation’s top senior quarterback from Nashville Christian has dominated headlines since Oct. 22, when he visited a Vanderbilt practice and days later attended the Commodores’ home game against Missouri.

A source close to the situation told The Tennessean that while Curtis and Vanderbilt have spoken, the narrative that he will flip to the Commodores is inaccurate. The Vanderbilt staff has never spoken with Curtis’ parents, according to the source.

More: Inside Georgia football commit Jared Curtis film study session: 'He's creative'

More: What Vanderbilt football's Diego Pavia said to Georgia commit Jared Curtis in TSSAA football win

Multiple recruiting experts believe Curtis intends on committing to Vanderbilt. Rivals recruiting reporter Steve Wiltfong and 247Sports reporter Tom Loy both logged official predictions that Curtis will flip from Georgia.

Curtis would be Vanderbilt’s highest rated commitment of all-time. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound dual-threat prospect, is the No. 1 quarterback nationally and No. 4 player overall from the 2026 class, according to the 247Sports Composite.

Curtis plans to sign with a school on Dec. 5, despite the early signing period beginning Dec. 3. Nashville Christian (12-0) will play USJ (11-1) in the Division II-A state championship game on Dec. 4 in Chattanooga.

Curtis totaled 3,467 yards of offense, 58 touchdowns and three interceptions in 2024, winning the Division II-A Mr. Football award and Gatorade Tennessee Player of the Year.

How does Vanderbilt football extending Clark Lea’s contract play a factor?

Demand for new college football coaches is high due to numerous firings in 2025. Florida, Penn State and potentially Ole Miss, if Lane Kiffin takes another job, could all see Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea as an attractive candidate.

But any questions about Lea’s future were answered when his Vanderbilt contract was extended on Nov. 28. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed. However, ESPN's Pete Thamel reported the extension is for six years and includes promises of facility upgrades.

If Curtis and other recruits were waiting to see if Lea would stick around, they got their answer.

Jared Curtis Vanderbilt football flip reports began a month ago

Reports about Vanderbilt’s pursuit of Curtis swirled the week leading up to the Commodores’ game against Missouri on Oct. 25.

It began when Curtis and Nashville Christian coach Jeff Brothers, a former Vanderbilt quarterback, attended a Vanderbilt practice together on Oct. 22. It was a part of a professional shadowing assignment Nashville Christian gave its students, Brothers told The Tennessean.

Curtis' agent, Peter Webb of QB Reps, confirmed Curtis would be attending the Missouri game. The night before kickoff, Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo was on the sidelines for Nashville Christian’s 65-12 win over Ezell-Harding on Oct. 24.

During Nashville comedian Nate Bargatze’s “College Gameday” show appearance before the Missouri game, he made a pitch for Curtis to attend Vanderbilt. ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit also brought up Curtis.

“It’s hard not to remind Jared Curtis how much I'd love for him to come to Vanderbilt,” Bargatze said. “We’re local kids. We’ll become best friends, bud.”

Vanderbilt football QB Diego Pavia has met with Jared Curtis

The Commodores have been hanging around Curtis a lot over the past month.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia attended Nashville Christian’s Oct. 10 game against Tyner Academy. Pavia was there as a guest of Joshua Smith, whose son plays for Nashville Christian.

Pavia and Curtis exchanged pleasantries before Pavia left at halftime.

"I think Jared is the next big thing here, and so I hope to keep him here in Nashville," Pavia said after Vanderbilt’s 45-17 win over Kentucky on Nov. 22. "I think he's a talent. When I watched him, his arm is crazy. Reminds me kind of (Patrick) Mahomes and stuff. So, yeah, I'd love to come back to watch Blaze (Berlowitz), and then watch him."

On Nov. 21, Vanderbilt baseball coach Tim Corbin and his wife, Maggie, attended Nashville Christian’s Division II-A semifinal game against Trinity Christian.

Tyler Palmateer covers high school sports for The Tennessean. Have a story idea for Tyler? Reach him at [email protected] and on the X platform, @tpalmateer83.

He also contributes to The Tennessean's high school sports newsletter, The Bootleg. Subscribe to The Bootleg here.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Is Jared Curtis flipping to Vanderbilt football? What we know