LB Kobie McKinzie, a former Oklahoma pledge, announces commitment to Texas

On Sunday, Texas added to its 2022 recruiting class when Lubbock (Texas) Lubbock-Cooper four-star linebacker Kobie McKinzie announced his commitment to the Longhorns.

“I chose UT because of the family vibe I got, and how they plan on doing everything,” McKinzie said.

The 6-foot-2, 245-pound McKinizie was previously committed to Oklahoma for 11 months. He backed off the pledge a week ago when former head coach Lincoln Riley left for USC.

Texas made quick work in this recruitment after extending an offer to McKinzie on Tuesday. Next, McKinzie took an official visit to see the Longhorns this weekend. Now, he is the 21st commit in Texas’ 2022 recruiting class. McKinzie even noted how hectic this past week has been for him in a recent interview.

“This past week has been so chaotic, preparing for such a high-level playoff game in addition to the recruiting stress has been a lot,” said Kobie McKinzie. “But at the same time, it’s also been a lot of fun. It’s been really nice to see how all this recruiting attention feels again but I just want to find somewhere that fits me.”

The On3 Consensus Team Recruiting Rankings have Texas sitting with the No. 7 class for the 2022 cycle after the commitment of McKenzie. That is two spots higher than the Longhorns started the day. Also, Texas has the No. 1 recruiting class in the Big 12.

McKinzie is the second linebacker in the 2022 recruiting class for Texas. He joins fellow four-star Trevell Johnson, out of Arlington (Texas) Martin.

Kobie McKinzie national ranking

The On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average, currently ranks McKinzie as the nation’s No. 180 overall prospect, the No. 18 linebacker and the No. 33 player in the state of Texas for the 2022 class.

McKinzie was named one of 16 seminfinalists for the 2021 High School Butkus Award, which is awarded to the best linebacker in the country, earlier this month but did not make the final list.

The talented linebacker had a great senior high school season. He is a key member of the Lubbock Cooper defense that has held opposing offenses to about 10 points per game and is 13-1 on the season. The team will be playing in the state semifinals this weekend against Dallas South Oak Cliff.