Brenden Anes, a three-star outside linebacker from Fred J. Page High School in Tennessee, committed to Wisconsin in late January.

Thursday evening, the standout in the 2025 recruiting class backed away from his pledge to the Badgers and flipped his commitment to Tennessee. Staying close to home, according to a source, played a strong factor in this decision.

A 6-foot-3, 225-pound senior, Anes was commit No. 7 for the Badgers in the 2025 class. He was recruited by position coach Matt Mitchell.

"The staff at Wisconsin are great people and they have an awesome fan base," Anes told BadgerBlitz.com at the time of his commitment to UW. "I got to spend the whole junior day with the staff, and that relationship building is so great with them. They really care who you are as a person.

"I got to see the ins and the outs of the defense with Coach Mitchell. We sat in meetings with the defense and got to talk some ball together. I'm a really good fit for that scheme and there are great people there who are going to develop me. I can't wait to be a Badger."

In January, Anes chose Wisconsin over offers from Austin Peay, Charlotte, Duke, Indiana, Liberty, Memphis, Tennessee and Wake Forest, among others. He was part of an outside linebacker class that also included Samuel Lateju and Nicolas Clayton.

The Badgers now have 22 scholarship commitments in the 2025 class. It is unclear at this time if the staff will attempt to add another outside linebacker before Signing Day in December.

Tennessee now has the No. 11 recruiting class in the country.

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