Top Longhorns LB Target Harold Perkins Signs With LSU

The Longhorns lost a major linebacker target to the SEC

Matt Galatzan | Feb 2, 2022

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Texas Longhorns

In early January, the Texas Longhorns seemingly lost a major target, with elite Cy Park (Cypress, TX) linebacker Harold Perkins committed to the Texas A&M Aggies at the Under Armour All-American Game in Orlando.

However, it appears that Perkins might have made his decision before he was ready, de-committing from the program and re-opening his recruitment less than a month later.

Now, the No. 16 overall prospect in the nation per the Sports Illustrated rankings, has found his new home, spurning the Longhorns yet again, signing with the LSU Tigers.

Perkins picked the Tigers despite late overtures from the Longhorns, Texas A&M, and the Florida Gators.

"This has been one of the hardest decisions to make," Perkins said of his decision. "But I will be de-committing from Texas A&M and will announce my decision February 2nd at my school."

Perkins was a natural fit to be able to fill the box safety/linebacker hybrid role in Texas A&M's defense.

On the flip side, the defender would have likely played a big nickel or “WILL” backer role in Pete Kwiatkowsi’s 4-2-5 base set.

In the past two seasons with Cypress Park, Perkins has accumulated 93 total tackles, 23.5 tackles for loss, seven sacks, six quarterback hurries, 13 pass deflections, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, an interception, a blocked punt, and a blocked field goal in just 20 games.

A dynamic athlete, Perkins also amassed 983 yards and 14 touchdowns on 96 carries (10.2 YPC) in just 10 games in his junior season at running back.

Recently the Longhorns received a signature from linebacker Trevell Johnson, who currently sits as the lone 2022 recruit in the class.

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Published Feb 2, 2022

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.