5-Star LB Tyler Atkinson Commits to Texas over Georgia, Clemson, Oregon

Five-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson has committed to Texas as a member of the Class of 2026, he announced Tuesday on ESPN's The Pat McAfee Show.

He chose the Longhorns over his other final choices of Clemson, Georgia and Oregon.

Atkinson, listed at 6'2'' and 210 pounds out of Loganville, Georgia, is ranked as the top linebacker prospect and the No. 9 overall prospect in the class by 247Sports composite rankings.

He has recorded at least 100 tackles, 20 tackles for loss and eight sacks in each of his three high school seasons, per MaxPreps' Zack Poff. He helped lead Grayson High School to a state championship in 2024.

247Sports director of scouting Andrew Ivins compared Atkinson to the Baltimore Ravens' Roquan Smith as a "highly-productive inside linebacker that can emerge as the soul of a defense with his instincts and athleticism."

Invis predicted that Atkinson "could fit into a variety of different schemes at the next level and will likely offer three-down value given how he moves and strikes."

Atkinson joins four-star prospect Kosi Okpala as the second linebacker to commit to Texas as part of the Class of 2026.

Those two additions could help Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns brace for the upcoming departure of Anthony Hill Jr., who can go pro ahead of the 2026 season. Hill will serve as a starting linebacker for Texas this fall, but The Athletic's Nick Baumgardner reported last week that his "physical traits have been all over NFL radars for at least a year now."

Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart will, meanwhile, miss out on a commitment that would have allowed Georgia to leapfrog USC's 2026 recruiting class as No. 1 in the 247Sports rankings.

Atkinson has been seen as a top option for Georgia, which has been recruiting him since before he was in eighth grade, per Connor Riley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

This marks the second high-profile defensive prospect the Bulldogs have lost out on to the Longhorns in recent months. Five-star defensive lineman Justus Terry, a member of the Class of 2025, told On3's Chad Simmons he was influenced by "just a straight-up better NIL package" when deciding to flip from Georgia to Texas in December.