Elite 2026 EDGE Jamarion Carlton names top 10 schools

One of the top juniors in the Lone Star State has trimmed his list of top schools down to 10.

On Tuesday night, Temple (Texas) four-star EDGE Jamarion Carlton told On3’s Hayes Fawcett that he’s now considering the following programs: Baylor, Kansas State, LSU, Nebraska, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and USC.

Carlton is the No. 40 overall prospect and No. 5 EDGE in the 2026 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 4 player in Texas.

“I’m looking at schools to see if they’re a fit for me and if it’ll be a good place for me education-wise in terms of what I want to do,” Carlton told On3’s Chad Simmons in August. “I am studying everything about the opportunities there. I look around a lot when I visit schools.” 

Carlton took an unofficial visit to Ohio State in June and also saw Texas and Texas A&M in late July. While four in-state programs made his latest cut, Carlton told Simmons that location and proximity to home will not be a deciding factor in his eventual decision.

Carlton talks Longhorns and Aggies

Texas and Texas A&M have had Carlton on campus the most of any programs in the mix thus far. Longhorns defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski has already made a good impression on the elite blue-chipper, as have multiple coaches in College Station alongside Mike Elko.

“He’s a very good coach,” Carlton said of Kwiatkowski. “It’s close to home and Texas is a good school. They have a whole lot of good players and it was amazing watching practice again.” 

“I like them a lot,” he said of the A&M staff. “When I first went down there, I was able to talk to most of the coaches and coach Elko a lot. When I was down there recently, I got to talk to a lot of the coaches again. Coach Elko is a good guy. I like the d-line coaches there too. They’re pretty good.”