Five-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson continues to be one of the most talked about recruits in the country. The No. 1 linebacker in the 2026 recruiting class just wrapped up his official visit in Athens last weekend, and the Bulldogs appeared to have made another huge impression on him.
One expert even went as far as to say that it would be a "major surprise" for Georgia to not win this recruitment.
That obviously is a nice thing to hear, but it means nothing until Atkinson actually commits to Georgia. Unfortunately for Georgia, there does appear to be one more hurdle for the Bulldogs to overcome in this recruitment as Atkinson will make an official visit to Texas this weekend.
The Longhorns are a new team getting involved with Atkinson, which is always a concern when that happens this late in the cycle. So Georgia fans will just have to wait and see how his visit to Texas goes.
But even with this visit taking place, an ESPN writer still believes that Georgia is the "clear leader" for Atkinson right now.
"Georgia and a coaching staff that has hosted Atkinson on campus more than a dozen times over the past few years remains the clear leader for Atkinson, but Texas is gaining steam in the 2026 defensive class and could soon rival the Bulldogs in his process," ESPN's Eli Lederman shared via si.com.
Georgia will have to hold off Texas to win Tyler Atkinson's recruitment
The Longhorns are one of the scariest teams to be up against on the recruiting trail. Texas has one of the richest histories in all of college football while also having the financial backing to impress any recruit. So seeing Texas get involved this late is reason enough for Georgia fans to be a little concerned.
But the Bulldogs have been the team to beat in Atkinson's recruitment for quite some time. Atkinson has even taken 15 visits to Georgia throughout his recruitment. So if he truns his back on Georgia for a new team this late in his recruitment, then he may not be someone Georgia actually would want in the first place.
But that appears to be unlikely to happen as the Bulldogs are still in a great position to come out on top in this recruitment.