Five-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson has quickly become the most talked about recruit in the 2026 recruiting class. And with his commitment quickly approaching, a new prediction has been logged predicting Atkinson to commit to SEC rival Texas over Georgia.
NEW: Rivals’ @ChadSimmons_ and @SWiltfong_ have logged expert predictions for Texas to land No. 1 LB Tyler Atkinson🤘
— Rivals (@Rivals) July 14, 2025
Atkinson is set to announce his commitment tomorrow.
Read: https://t.co/WygF8tB7Xb pic.twitter.com/Zy07y082gS
5-star Tyler Atkinson predicted to commit to Texas
Monday night marked a significant moment in Atkinson's recruitment as he shared that he will be committing on July 15. Atkinson also shared that he will be deciding between Georgia, Texas, Oregon and Clemson when he announces his final decision.
These are the four schools that Atkinson officially visited in June, so it isn't a surprise to see them be his final four. Entering Monday however Atkinson was thought by most recruiting experts to be leaning towards Georgia. Most insiders also thought Texas was a close second, but the Bulldogs were the consensus pick to win his recruitment.
That however changed on Monday as Rivals' Steve Wiltfong and Chad Simmons have placed predictions for Atkinson to commit to Texas. 247Sports agrees with these predictions as well as they have logged three crystal ball predictions in favor of the Longhorns.
No word has been shared regarding what went wrong for Georgia in this recruitment. The Bulldogs are the in-state program for Atkinson and no program has found more success at linebacker throughout the past decade than Georgia. These clearly are great reasons as to why Atkinson should pick Georgia, but it appears to not be enough for him.
Georgia fans still shouldn't lose all hope because there is a chance Kirby Smart can work his magic and still find a way to win this recruitment. Just last month defensive lineman PJ Dean was predicted to South Carolina the day of his commitment, but Dean ultimately ended up committing to Georgia.
If anyone can pull off the impossible it is Smart who is one of the best recruiters in the country, so hopefully he can find a way to come from behind and keep Atkinson in the Peach State.