Texas Named Finalist for No. 1 Recruit in New Jersey

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Grant Bricker | Last updated May 17, 2025 5:12 PM ET

The Texas Longhorns' 2026 recruiting class ranks 12th overall in the country on On3 Sports, and they are looking to get inside the top 10.

On3's Hayes Fawcett reported Friday that Texas made the final cut for four-star edge rusher Luke Wafle out of Middletown, New Jersey. Wafle's other finalists are the Ohio State Buckeyes, USC Trojans, Penn State Nittany Lions and Florida Gators.

He is listed at 6-foot-5.5, 245 pounds and attends Hun School.

Texas is fresh off its first season in the SEC, where the Longhorns went 11-1 and reached the SEC Championship Game. The Longhorns then went to the College Football Playoff as the No. 5 seed.

Wafle is the No. 53 national prospect, No. 10 edge rusher and No. 1 recruit from New Jersey in the On3 Industry Rankings.

Texas is in second for Wafle via the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine. Penn State is the leader at 25.4%, while Texas follows at 17.3%. Ohio State is third at 10.7%, with USC tied with Florida for fourth at 7.2%.

The Longhorns' 2026 class is highlighted by five-star quarterback Dia Bell, four-star athlete Jermaine Banks Jr. and four-star receiver Chris Stewart.

Texas' recruiting reach knows no bounds, as the Longhorns have dipped into Sweden to find a college football prospect recently. Texas was named one of the top schools for international prospect Valdin Sone out of PPI Recruits in Malmo, Sweden.

On the transfer portal side, Texas has solid additions like former Syracuse Orange defensive lineman Maraad Watson. On3's Pete Nakos believes Watson will have a massive impact next season.

After making the playoff, Texas reached the semifinal round by beating the Clemson Tiger and Arizona State Sun Devils. The Longhorns eventually lost to Ohio State 28-14, who won the national championship.

Texas opens the 2025 season against Ohio State on Aug. 30.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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