Texas flips one highly-touted defensive recruit, picks up commitment from another

Tuesday was a good day for the Longhorns.

Already with a top-10 ranked recruiting class for 2026, Texas added another pair of commitments on Tuesday in 5-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson and 4-star defensive lineman James Johnson.

Atkinson is the highest-ranked recruit to commit to Texas in the Class of 2026 thus far. Rated the No. 20 prospect in the country by 247, the Loganville, Ga., native picked the Longhorns over offers from his home state Georgia, Oregon, Clemson and more.

The 6-2, 210-pound linebacker announced his commitment on the Pat McAfee Show.

Johnson, also called “JJ”, flipped from Georgia to the Longhorns and announced his commitment to Texas on Tuesday, per On3 Sports.

On3 has Johnson rated as the No. 1 defensive line recruit in the nation.

The 6-3, 285-pound Johnson comes from Northwestern High School in Miami and announced his short-lived commitment to the Bulldogs on June 28th. He’s also a shot-putter for the track and field team.

The Longhorns now have 20 commits in their Class of 2026. 247Sports currently has Texas ranked as the sixth-best class for 2026, behind USC, Georgia, Texas A&M, Notre Dame and Alabama.

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