Breaking down the latest expert picks in the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine

The dog days of summer — and the college football recruiting calendar — are upon us. With a week left to go in July, 250 of the nation’s top 300 prospects in the On3 Industry Ranking are already pledged to a school.

And even more are expected to come off the board in the next few weeks before their senior football seasons begin. With those decisions looming, a slew of expert picks have gone into the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM), including multiple from national insiders Chad Simmons and Steve Wiltfong.

Here’s the latest on some of their biggest recent predictions:

4-star EDGE Jared Smith

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 42
On3 RPM: Auburn 80.3%, South Carolina 13.5%

The Skinny: For much of the spring and early summer, South Carolina was considered the favorite to land Jared Smith, one of the nation’s top uncommitted prospects. He took official visits with USC, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida State, and Ole Miss, but coincidentally, not Auburn.

The in-state program has surged in a huge way for the Hoover-area star though, with multiple picks going in their favor since he announced he would commit on August 3. Smith is expected to be on The Plains in a few days for Big Cat Weekend, which could be his final visit before decision day.

4-star SAF Lagonza Hayward

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 100
On3 RPM: Tennessee 77.8%, Georgia 20.0%

The Skinny: Lyons (Ga.) Toombs County four-star safety Lagonza Hayward is down to a trio of SEC schools he visited this summer: Georgia, Tennessee and Florida. The Volunteers have been considered the leader for a long time now, but both the Bulldogs and Gators made things interesting on his official visits there.

Still, Josh Heupel and Co. look primed to land one of their top overall targets on the board.

4-star TE DaSaahn Brame

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 101
On3 RPM: Tennessee 78.4%, Oregon 16.8%

The Skinny: When Derby (Kan.) four-star tight end DaSaahn Brame committed to Oregon less than a month ago, the Ducks won out despite a hard push from Tennessee to add him to its commit list.

Those two programs had been jockeying for position in his recruitment for months, but ultimately he chose the program in Eugene. Unsurprisingly though, the Volunteers haven’t ceded any ground in their pursuit of him, and it looks to be paying off. On Monday, three expert picks went into the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM) for the Vols to flip Brame.

4-star SAF Ladarian Clardy

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 179
On3 RPM: Ole Miss 95.3%, Mississippi State 1.3%

The Skinny: Pensacola (Fla.) Excambia four-star safety Ladarian Clardy is set to commit on Aug. 3. He is planning to visit Washington on July 27 and then focus on his decision. Clardy is a major target for Florida State, and he almost committed to the local program after his official visit. He held off, he finished out his visits and now, Ole Miss is trending just over a week out from his decision. The staff has really connected with Clardy and his family, putting the Rebels in a good position late in this race. — Chad Simmons, On3 Director of Recruiting

4-star WR Naeshaun Montgomery

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 247
On3 RPM: Florida 93.4%, LSU 1.8%

The Skinny: West Palm Beach (Fla.) Miami Central four-star wideout Naeshaun Montgomery is down to six programs and is now set to reveal his college decision on Aug. 25. He will choose between Alabama, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Oregon and Penn State.

Montgomery took official visits to Florida and Penn State. And the in-state Gators are currently trending for his pledge, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). That follows picks from UF insiders Keith Niebuhr and Corey Bender, as well as Wiltfong.

4-star RB Shekai Mills-Knight

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 347
On3 RPM: Ole Miss 90.9%, Tennessee 2.3%, Auburn 2.0%

The Skinny: Chattanooga (Tenn.) Baylor four-star running back Shekai Mills-Knight has not set a commitment date, but he is pushing toward making his college decision the first half of August. Alabama, Auburn, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio State, Tennessee and Miami join Ole Miss on the list of contenders.

Ole Miss was the first to offer Mills-Knight and the Rebels are in great shape to land his commitment currently. Like with Clardy, the staff is doing a great job making Mills-Knight feel like a priority. — Chad Simmons, On3 Director of Recruiting

4-star SAF Rylon Dillard-Allen

On3 Industry Ranking: No. 365
On3 RPM: Washington 92.8%, Arizona State 1.8%

The Skinny: Phoenix (Ariz.) Mountain Pointe four-star safety Rylon Dillard-Allen committed to Arizona State early in the process, but backed off that pledge in May. He then took official visits to UCLA, Washington, Kansas, Alabama and Texas A&M in June.

On Wednesday, Simmons logged an expert prediction in the Huskies’ favor for one of the top prospects out west.