2024 No. 1 RB Jerrick Gibson says he has Texas football ‘at the top’

With the Early Signing Period now in the rearview mirror for the 2023 cycle, the 2024 Texas football recruiting class is now coming front and center on the Forty Acres. Texas and head coach Steve Sarkisian are looking to build a solid foundation in the 2024 recruiting class, which is a process that will definitely include the elite five-star IMG Academy running back Jerrick Gibson.

The nation’s top-rated running back recruit for the 2024 cycle is someone that already looks to be high on the Longhorns in the early stages of his recruitment. Gibson was pretty high on running backs coach Tashard Choice and the Longhorns since he made the unofficial trip out to Austin last summer.

He spoke highly of the visit to Austin last summer. And it sounds as if Texas has remained one of his top schools ever since.

A recent report from Jason Suchomel of Orangebloods (subscriber content) is another indication of the interest that Gibson has in Texas at this point of his recruitment. Gibson’s father spoke with Suchomel of Orangebloods, in a piece published on Jan. 8.

5-Star 2024 RB Jerrick Gibson reportedly is high on Texas football heading into 2023

Gibson’s father reportedly said the following regarding Texas’ standing with the elite running back.

"“They’re at the top. If he had to come out with a top three right now, they’d definitely be in there”."

It sounds like Gibson is really liking what Texas was able to do with the reigning consensus All-American junior running back Bijan Robinson in the last few seasons. The fit in Sark’s offensive scheme is natural for the 5-foot-11 and 190-pound Gibson, who will only put on more size in the next year or so.

It’s also worth noting that Gibson’s father also mentioned that the other two schools that would currently be included in a top three right now if it had to be named are the Tennessee Volunteers and Georgia Bulldogs. Tennessee made quite the impression on a pair of unofficial visits that Gibson took to see Knoxville in 2022.

And Georgia has remained a player in this recruitment for over a year now.

One part of this report that caught my attention in terms of Gibson’s primary factors that will help him arrive at a final decision was the emphasis on scheme fit. Gibson’s father stated that scheme fit will be a more important factor than area vibe or proximity to home when it comes to the Gainesville native’s final decision.

Given the impact that Choice, Sark, and the Longhorns were able to make on Gibson thus far, that should play to their advantage as this recruitment progresses throughout 2023.

Moreover, the next target date for Gibson to make it back to Austin looks to be the spring game in a few months. If he’s not able to make it for the spring game, which will likely be around the traditional time of year in late April, it sounds like an official visit during the summer or fall would be the next time he makes it to Austin.

Texas currently has a couple of recruits committed to the 2024 class as of Jan. 8. Gibson is clearly the top target at the running back position in the Longhorns 2024 class with Choice and this staff setting their sights on signing the top recruit at the position for the second straight cycle.