Texas Football: 5-Star DL Dominick McKinley sets time for commitment

The next big commitment date to watch among priority recruits for Texas football in the 2024 class is Sep. 1, with the elite five-star Lafayette (LA) Acadiana defensive lineman Dominick McKinley. The No. 1 ranked defensive line recruit in Louisiana in the 2024 class in the 247Sports Composite and On3 Industry Ranking is reportedly set to announce his decision on Sep. 1 at 3:30 p.m. CT.

Gerry Hamilton of Inside Texas/On3 reported on Aug. 28 that McKinley will announce his commitment on Sep. 1 at 3:30 p.m. CT at Acadiana High School.

Texas is one of McKinley’s five finalist schools he’ll decide between on Sep. 1. The other four finalist schools are the Texas A&M Aggies, Ohio State Buckeyes, Oklahoma Sooners, and LSU Tigers.

Texas football among finalists for 5-Star DL Dominick McKinley’s decision on Sep. 1

Texas has remained at the forefront of this recruitment since McKinley took a late-June official visit to Austin. Defensive line coach Bo Davis and the Longhorns have great relationships with McKinley and his family.

McKinley and his family also like the strong combination of academics and athletics at Texas, along with the proximity of Austin to home for them in Lafayette, LA.

He also took official visits during the summer to Ohio State (June 2), Texas A&M (June 9), and Oklahoma (June 16).

Texas and Texas A&M have the momentum late in this recruitment

On3’s Sam Spiegelman reported on the morning of Aug. 29 that Texas and Texas A&M are the schools setting the pace in this recruitment heading into McKinley’s commitment date on Sep. 1. Texas and Texas A&M both check a lot of the boxes that are important factors in this recruitment for McKinley and his family (i.e., academics, athletics, proximity to home).

The communication between McKinley and Ohio State’s staff, namely Buckeyes DL coach Larry Johnson, remains strong at this point of the recruitment. But the distance between Lafayette, LA, and Columbus, OH, is too far for many to consider the Buckeyes a real threat to land McKinley on Sep. 1.

McKinley is Texas’ top remaining priority at DL in the 2024 class

Heading into the fall, McKinley is the clear-cut top priority at defensive line for Davis and the Longhorns in the 2024 class. Texas already has commitments from three defensive linemen in the 2024 class, including Lafayette Christian Academy (LA) three-star Melvin Hills, Orlando (FL) Jones four-star D’antre Robinson, and Duncanville four-star Alex January.

If Texas lands McKinley’s commitment on Sep. 1, that should put a bow on defensive line recruiting for Davis and the Longhorns in the 2024 class this fall.