Arguably the top remaining target on Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney's 2026 board has officially made his decision.
Five-star linebacker and No. 9 player in the nation Tyler Atkinson cut his list to four teams earlier this month, and he made his decision on Tuesday afternoon.
Unfortunately, it wasn't good news for Clemson.
Atkinson narrowed his list recently to Oregon, Clemson, Texas, and Georgia, and many expected it to come down to the wire with each program offering something unique. In the end, he chose Texas.
BREAKING: Five-Star LB Tyler Atkinson has Committed to Texas!
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) July 15, 2025
The 6’2 215 LB from Lawrenceville, GA chose the Longhorns over Georgia, Oregon, & Clemson
He’s ranked as the No. 1 LB in the ’26 Class (per Rivals)🤘https://t.co/pnxd0NmN0T pic.twitter.com/M9RCJrz8YU
I'll admit, I thought Clemson had a really good chance here, especially since the Tigers got his first official visit. He spoke highly of Clemson and the coaching staff and even raved about the defensive packages built around him. Unfortunately, this is the second five-star miss by Dabo over the past two weeks as he also missed on Bryce Perry-Wright who chose Texas A&M.
The state of Texas has not been kind to Clemson recently.
Atkinson was the No. 1 overall linebacker in the 2026 class, per 247Sports, and he was a top-10 recruit in the country. He would have been an elite addition and it's a little surprising to see him say 'no thanks' to Tom Allen and Ben Boulware who are building something special on the defensive side of the ball.
Georgia, too, has to be sick about this decision because Atkinson is from the Bulldogs' backyard. I actually expected this decision to come down to Clemson or Georgia.
Time for Dabo to get back to the drawing board to identify another top linebacker target to pursue.