With the regular season over, Vanderbilt is making big moves in the recruitment sector. A big name has come up for the Commodores in the form of five-star quarterback Jared Curtis. Curtis, who committed to the Bulldogs in 2025, has now officially flipped to Vanderbilt, which would be big news for head coach Clark Lea.

He is the No. 1 quarterback nationally and No. 4 player overall from the 2026 class. So, can his commitment help Vanderbilt move up the college football rankings and secure a playoff spot? The answer is no, much to Clark Lea’s dismay.

The reason is that a single commitment, even from a top quarterback, has no impact on CFP rankings because the committee doesn’t evaluate recruiting. Their criteria focus on on-field results, strength of schedule, win quality, and conference titles. Curtis won’t even be on campus yet, so he remains completely irrelevant to how the committee ranks Vanderbilt.

For Lea, Jared Curtis’ commitment means he has found a successor to quarterback Diego Pavia, who led the Vanderbilt offense this season. Curtis drew headlines for his standout performances at Nashville Christian High School. The 6’3″, 225-pound quarterback posted 3,467 yards, 58 touchdowns, and just three interceptions last season, earning both the Division II-A Mr. Football award and the Gatorade Tennessee Player of the Year honor.