Texas has had a bit of a slow start to the summer, landing just four commits since the start of June. But the momentum may be shifting upwards as the Longhorns reel in a four-star defender.
Forth Worth (Texas) North Crowley four-star outside linebacker Jonathan Cunningham has announced his commitment to Texas.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder chose Texas over finalists, TCU and Utah.
Cunningham is the second linebacker addition to the 2025 class for Texas, but is the first outside backer among the group. Four-star Elijah Barnes projects to play on the inside at 230-pounds.
Rivals is high on the North Crowley prospect as we are the lone recruiting service have Cunningham in four-star status.
In his prep career to this point, he has totaled 82 tackles and 17 tackles for loss.
With the addition of Cunningham, Texas moves up the ranks from No. 33 to No. 26 in the 2025 Recruiting Team Rankings.
What is Texas getting in Cunningham?
Steve Sarkisian and his staff are adding a very intriguing piece to their defense as well as filling a need of a position and skillset they do not have yet in the 2025 class. Cunningham, is a great mold of a new age uber athletic backer. An impressively lengthy athlete at a legit 6-foot-3 with a verified 34.5-inch arms and near 80-inch wingspan. He plays a true off-ball outside backer position at North Crowley and has shown versatility to play in coverage, even on the outside, as well as be a force at the line of scrimmage in run defense. His athletic profile, that will also see him add plenty of mass in the future, lends him to being a fun piece for Texas to deploy in their defense.
There is also a lot to like with the intangibles for Cunningham. Film shows he is a very instinctual player and has a natural smoothness to how he moves and pursues on the field. Twitched up athlete that shows in his pass rush ability. I think there is a high upside in his game to get after the quarterback as a blitzer and in key situations. Is an asset on the backend, defending passes, and also lays the wood as a physical tackler.
Won linebacker MVP at the Rivals Camp Series in Dallas this spring.
