Nation's No.1 LB Reported to Visit Another College Powerhouse as Recruiting Battle Intensifies
Nation's No.1 LB Reported to Visit Another College Powerhouse as Recruiting Battle Intensifies originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Five-star prospect Tyler Atkinson is deciding where he should play college football, and another powerhouse school has added its name to the list.
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Atkinson, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound linebacker for Grayson High School in Lawrenceville, Georgia, broke the record for tackles with 197 as a sophomore before recording 166 tackles, 13 sacks, an interception and a forced fumble as a junior in 2024. He led the school to a 6A state championship last season by defeating Carrollton High School, 38-24.
Power-five programs such as Georgia, Clemson, Auburn, Ohio State and Alabama are on Atkinson's radar, with the Bulldogs leading at 30.9 percent, according to his On3 player profile. However, recently, he visited the Dabo Swinney-coached Clemson Tigers and seemed pleased with what he saw from the program.
'The official visit was OFFICIAL,' Atkinson wrote on X Sunday. 'It was the definition of 'feeling like a priority.''
Five-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson makes a visit to watch the Ohio State Buckeyes play.Lori Schmidt / Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
He has also been linked to Kirby Smart's Bulldogs as a Georgia native and student-athlete at Grayson. The linebacker has been on the school's campus multiple times since middle school to create a sense of familiarity with how Smart operates his defense.
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As Atkinson's recruitment intensifies, he will visit the Oregon Ducks next, according to On3 reporter Hayes Fawcett. If he commits to the Ducks, he will join a linebacker core already composed of freshman Gavin Nix and sophomore Blake Purchase, who could still be on the roster by the time he joins in fall 2026.
A date for Atkinson's visit has yet to be announced.
Related: Cade Klubnik Encourages Tigers Fans To Support A Cause Pivotal For Clemson Student Athletes
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
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