Texas football adds big body mover in 3-Star IOL Nate Kibble

Texas football added its second commitment of the weekend and the sixth in the 2024 recruiting class on June 25 with four-star Humble (TX) Atascocita interior offensive lineman Nate Kibble. He is also the second blue-chip commit of the weekend, joining Texas’ 2024 recruiting class along with the elite five-star IMG Academy running back Jerrick Gibson.

Offensive line coach/offensive coordinator Kyle Flood and the Longhorns got their first commit along the O-Line in the 2024 class this weekend with the sizable 6-foot-3 and 315-pound Kibble. Texas landed Kibble’s commitment, which he announced on social media on the evening of June 25, over offers from the Texas A&M Aggies, LSU Tigers, TCU Horned Frogs, and Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Flood and the Longhorns have targeted Kibble in the 2024 class for a long time. Kibble was offered by Texas more than 18 months ago. And he visited Texas multiple times unofficially and officially in the last 12 months.

Kibble committed to Texas amid his official visit to Texas from June 23-25. He was hosted during his official visit this weekend by freshman Texas offensive lineman Andre Cojoe.

Texas football gets its first OL commit in the 2024 class in 4-Star Nate Kibble

This was another big win on the recruiting trail for Flood and the Longhorns along the offensive line. Kibble is another high-upside “big human” that Flood can add to his stockpile of talent and depth along the offensive line upon Texas’ transition to the SEC.

Flood is proving to be one of the best recruiters along the offensive line of any coach in the country. Whether recruiting long-term upside players, undervalued low four-star and high three-star recruits, or going after the big fish among high four-star and five-star prospects, Flood is proving his worth on the trail in the last few cycles.

Breaking down Kibble’s game

What Kibble brings to the table is a versatile and overpowering presence along the offensive line, especially blocking for the ground game. Kibble’s film shows he can be a difference-maker as a run blocker. He is a capable pull blocker who can thrive in the more generic zone and gap-blocking schemes.

Kibble is fleet-of-foot in space, allowing him to get downfield and win blocking battles with defensive linemen, edge rushers, and linebackers as a pull blocker. But Kibble’s film also shows he can finish blocks effectively and get multiple levels deep into opposing defenses as a zone blocker.

He can be a high-level run blocker early in his collegiate career in multiple schemes and run plays.

Another major strength that Kibble brings to the table is his football IQ and ability to see plays developing on the fly. Kibble can see defenses adjusting at the line of scrimmage and know where to be to pick up his blocking assignment.

Kibble dove deeper into the strengths he brings to the table and what he needs to work on before being ready to assume live-game reps against Power Five competition at Texas with the On Texas Football YouTube show on June 25.

Kibble specifically cited his football IQ and understanding of the game as one of his biggest strengths. He mentioned in this interview that he’s “always doing something around football”, whether it’s watching, playing, or training.

This sounds obvious, but Kibble’s football IQ will help him develop his game as a run blocker and a pass rusher upon his transition to college next year.

Areas of improvement

The biggest area of improvement for Kibble is pass blocking. Kibble is a reliable pass blocker at offensive tackle for Atascocita. But he’ll need to get a little bit faster and work on his hands and pad-level approach in pass blocking before he’s ready to face Power Five competition at the collegiate level consistently.

Kibble mentioned “getting stronger” and “faster” as the areas he wants to improve most in the next couple of years.

"“Getting stronger, faster, you know being on the college level, everybody’s stronger and faster.”"

Fit and trajectory at Texas

The timing of the Kibble pickup in the 2024 class matters for the Longhorns when talking about his long-term fit along the offensive line. Kibble’s best fit (given his shorter frame and broad upper body) is likely along the interior offensive line.

Kibble could push for starting reps by his third year on campus, given the depth Texas has at offensive guard. Texas could be set along the interior offensive line for at least the next couple of years (at least at guard) if sophomores Cole Hutson and DJ Campbell develop the way we think they can heading into this fall.

There will be a chance for Kibble to compete for a starting spot along the interior offensive line a few years down the line. Flood and the Longhorns don’t have an elite recruit committed or on commitment watch in the 2024 class that projects at offensive guard, so Kibble will have a fair shot to get key live-game reps as an underclassman at Texas.

Texas has started to gain a lot of momentum on the recruiting trail in the 2024 class in the last couple of weeks, picking up five commitments in the last seven days, with Kibble now in the mix. According to the 247Sports Team Composite Rankings, the 2024 Texas recruiting class ranks No. 51 in the nation.