5-star Oregon football target Tyler Atkinson schedules visit to Texas Longhorns
When looking at the Oregon Ducks recruiting board in the 2026 cycle, there are few players who are likely higher priorities than 5-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson.
Standing at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, Atkinson is rated as the No. 9 player in the nation, and the No. 1 linebacker in the 2026 class, per the 247Sports Composite. He has been in Eugene a couple of times this year for visits, including an official visit earlier this month. A select group of Oregon coaches has also gone in-home to visit with Atkinson, and the Ducks reportedly feel good about where they stand for the elite defender.
They're going to have a lot of competition to land him, though, particularly down in SEC country.
Last week, Atkinson — a Georgia native — took yet another visit to Athens to see the Georgia Bulldogs, and this week, he announced that he is heading to see another SEC school: the Texas Longhorns.
Much like former 5-star LB Justin Williams, a high-profile member of the 2024 class, it feels as if Atkinson is being made a major priority for Lanning and his staff. Williams committed to Georgia a couple of years ago, but has had very little playing time so far with the Bulldogs.
We will see if Lanning and the Ducks are able to land Atkinson and bring him across the nation to the Pacific Northwest. If so, it would be undoubtedly one of the crowning achievements of Lanning's recruiting career thus far.
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