The Georgia Bulldogs are contenders to land the nation’s No. 1 recruit in the class of 2027, five-star edge rusher DJ Jacobs. The elite recruit is an in-state product with immense potential.

Jacobs is the No. 1 recruit in Georgia and the top edge rusher in the junior class. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound pass rusher is coming off an outstanding high school season with Blessed Trinity Catholic in Roswell, Georgia. Jacobs posted 16 sacks and 102 tackles during his outstanding 2025 season.

Despite previously being named as the “team to beat” for Jacobs, the Bulldogs appear to be headed in the wrong direction. Georgia is no longer the favorite to land the Blessed Trinity Catholic superstar, per Steve Wiltfong of Rivals (subscription required). The Bulldogs are competing with Texas A&M and Ohio State, but Wiltfong spoke with sources that view Miami as the team in the driver’s seat for Jacobs.

Missing out on Jacobs would hurt for Georgia. He is a disruptive force and frequents the opposing backfield. Jacobs’ father played for Georgia from 1999-2002, so Georgia would miss out on a great opportunity to land an in-state legacy recruit.

Georgia’s name, image and likeness deal recruiting philosophy is pointed to as one of the reasons why Jacobs could go elsewhere. The Bulldogs struggled with elite in-state prospects during the class of 2026 with coach Kirby Smart and UGA landing just one top-10 in-state recruit. In-state struggles is a big reason why Georgia finished with the No. 6 recruiting class in the country, which is the first time the Bulldogs will finish outside the top five since the class of 2016.

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This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: Georgia football losing ground on five-star recruit