The Longhorns landed another key piece to the 2026 class with the Houston-area defender, who has the versatility to play at the second level and come off the edge.
The Texas Longhorns continue to build an elite defensive class in the 2026 cycle, adding four-star defender Kosi Okpala on Thursday to a group that is rapidly moving up the rankings.
BREAKING: Four-Star LB Kosi Okpala has Committed to Texas, he tells me for @rivals
The 6’3 225 LB from Katy, TX chose the Longhorns over Penn State & Miami
“It’s a new era hook em”https://t.co/oyyt6RF5Gw pic.twitter.com/u7ctUMtOnk
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) July 3, 2025
A highly-coveted recruit out of Katy Mayde Creek, Okpala had suitors from every power conference, including eight SEC schools. He narrowed his list to five visits during the summer window — the Baylor Bears, Housotn Cougars, Miami Hurricanes, Penn State Nittany Lions, and the Longhorns, with Texas grabbing the coveted final weekend.
The No. 281 recruit in the class, according to the 247Sports Composite, Okpala is listed as either a linebacker or an edge by different recruiting services. He comes to Texas listed at 6’2, 230 pounds, so depending on his development, he could end up in either spot for the Longhorns. That being said, with Texas co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Johnny Nansen serving as his primary recruiter, it is easy to see that Texas perceives him as a linebacker in the immediate future.
A productive defender, Okpala racked up 121 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, and seven sacks in his two years as a starter for the Rams. He also turned in a sub-12 100-meter dash for the track team in the offseason.
Okpala becomes commitment No. 16 for Texas, joining a class that now features seven pledges on the defensive side of the ball. If he does serve as a linebacker, he is the first to join a class that may set the floor at the position for years to come at Texas.
Analysis (by Daniel Seahorn):
Okpala is currently an edge defender that will likely make the transition to an off-the-ball linebacker position at the college level. He possesses adequate size at his 6’2, 230 pounds and already has a nice muscular frame for himself at this stage in his development. Shows good initial quickness at the snap and shows the ability to run the arc and turn the corner as as a pass rusher off the edge. Shows upfield burst and quickness that allows him to beat blockers to their spots against the run. Shows adequate use of his hands when taking on blocks, but would like to see him be more assertive against blocks when he lines up as an off-the-ball linebacker. Shows good effort as a pursuit defender. Has produced solid production over the past two seasons with 31 tackles for loss and nine sacks along with with forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. There are still plenty of questions remaining about his skills and instincts due to the lack of tape of him playing off the ball. If the plan is to move him off the ball full-time then it will require some time in the incubation chamber to get him up the speed and develop his processor.