Kirby Smart's Georgia Bulldogs to host No. 2 overall prospect of 2026 class during upcoming game against Auburn

By Maliha

Modified Oct 03, 2024 10:50 GMT

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Week 6 of college football is gearing up for the Deep South’s oldest rivalry between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Auburn Tigers. This Saturday, No. 5 Georgia (3-1) will aim to rebound after suffering a disappointing 41-34 loss to Alabama, marking the Bulldogs' first defeat of the season. Meanwhile, Auburn (2-3) went down 27-21 to Oklahoma in its previous game.

Kirby Smart's Georgia will also host a number of top prospects during the contest, including 2026 offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell. He is ranked by On3 Industry Rankings as the No. 2 overall prospect in the nation, the No. 1 offensive tackle in the 2026 class and the No. 1 recruit in Missouri.

The 6-foot-7.5, 305-pound lineman is turning heads as one of the most highly-touted recruits in southwest Missouri high school football history, alongside former Hillcrest star Dorial Green-Beckham. In just five games this season, the offensive tackle has recorded 54 pancake blocks for the Nixa Eagles, as reported by MaxPreps.

Jackson Cantwell is the son of former Olympians Christian and Teri (Steer) Cantwell. Christian, a Missouri alum, is a five-time world champion and won a silver medal in the shot put at the 2008 Beijing Games, while Teti was a two-time NCAA shot put champion and served as a former assistant track coach at Mizzou.

Can Kirby Smart secure Jackson Cantwell's commitment for the Georgia Bulldogs?

Jackson Cantwell's top 14 college programs are Oregon, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Miami, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, LSU, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Georgia and USC.

As of now, Missouri leads the race for Cantwell with a 25.2% chance of landing his commitment, closely followed by Nebraska at 17.7%, per On3's Recruiting Prediction Machine. Last Friday, when his Nixa Eagles defeated Lebanon 56-12, he was seen wearing a glove from both Georgia and Missouri.

Though Georgia isn’t currently a frontrunner, Cantwell’s high opinion of Kirby Smart and Georgia offensive line coach Stacy Searels is starting to bring the program into the conversation. The school is also making moves to make him a "priority" recruit.

"Georgia is becoming a football dynasty, and it’s led by some great people, like coach Smart and coach Searels," Cantwell told SI. "Coach Searels has repeatedly said that I’m his number-one 2026 priority and that I would fit in very well for what Georgia is looking for."

The Bulldogs' 2026 class witnessed the decommitment of four-star athlete Derrek Cooper in June. The class still holds commitments of three players: cornerbacks Dominick Kelly and Jontavius Wyman, along with quarterback Jared Curtis.