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On3's No. 2 2026 safety Zelus Hicks commits to Texas

On3 imageby: Justin Wells09/12/24
Zelus Hicks 4 copy 1.jpg

Texas finished the month of August as one of the hottest teams in America in recruiting. The Longhorns picked up where they left off Thursday when 2026 Carrolton (Ga.) four-star Zelus Hicks committed to Texas.

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The 6-foot-1.5, 180-pound safety chose the Longhorns over Georgia, Tennessee, Auburn, and Clemson. Hicks is the first defensive player in the Longhorns’ 2026 class.

Hicks made two trips to Austin in the last few months, one in April for a spring scrimmage and another in June for Texas’ Elite Camp. He picked up his Texas offer on May 1st.

“(Steve Sarkisian’s) message was he really likes me, he really likes my character as a person, and he likes that I’ve got a good family foundation,” Hicks said in June. “Those were the main things he was pressing on me.”

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How he fits at Texas

Hicks appears to be Texas’ safety pick for the 2026 recruiting class barring a reclassification. It’s become normal for Terry Joseph and Blake Gideon to build their defensive back classes by taking mostly cornerback-types at every position with one true alley safety to serve as the big, physical enforcer for the back end. Hicks is that guy in the 2026 group.

He has a big frame at 6-foot-1.5 and 180 pounds as a junior, he’ll play at 6-foot-2 and 205 or heavier in a few years’ time. Hicks does his best work closing space and making tackles or plays on the ball from a deeper perch from which he can see things develop. He’d probably end up as a boundary safety in the Longhorn defense where he can stay relatively close to the box.

Hicks is the No. 33 overall prospect, No. 3 safety, and the No. 6 prospect in Georgia according to the 2026 On3 Industry Ranking. On3 ranks him as the No. 24 overall prospect, the No. 2 safety, and the No. 3 player in Georgia.

He joins Dia Bell and Chris Stewart in the Longhorns’ 2026 recruiting class.

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