Where Baylor football currently sits in ESPN's latest 2026 recruiting rankings
The 2025-2026 collegiate football season is just about halfway through, which means that the early signing period for incoming recruits is right around the corner. Although National Signing Day is not until February of 2026, many recruits will choose to lock in their commitments early during the early signing period, which takes place this year from December 3rd to 5th of 2025.
With that being said, many media outlets across the country coin this period of time "flip season," given the propensity for many top recruits to reconsider their verbal commitments. This reconsideration can stem from a lot of reasons, such as but not limited to: coaching changes, poor on-field performance, increased NIL efforts from rival programs, and so much more. Yet, with all of that being said, many recruits in the modern era of collegiate football still highlight the importance of relationships: whether that be with their respective position coach, head coach, or even other members of their recruiting class.
ESPN updates its 2026 recruiting class
While Baylor has not seen any attrition in its recruiting class, other programs have certainly been circling some of their top targets. When looking at where Baylor's recruiting class is currently ranked nationally, they have the No. 27 overall recruiting class in the country, according to ESPN. Headlining their class are a pair of defenders with the same first name: defensive lineman Jamarion Carlton and cornerback Jamarion Vincent. Currently ranked as the No. 98 overall player in the ESPN300, Carlton is a player that Dave Aranda and company see as a true plug-and-play guy at a significant position of need. It is no secret that the Baylor defense has been the team's Achilles heel this season, specifically the defensive line. While Baylor searched the transfer portal and brought in guys like Samu Taumanupepe to try and shore up their line, things still don't seem to be clicking for the Baylor front 4.
Although the position fit is perfect, given Carlton's status as a top recruit, other programs, such as but not limited to Texas, Texas Tech, and LSU, have all continued their pursuit of the coveted defensive lineman. Dave Aranda and his staff will look to fight off these other teams and will likely be doing so until Carlton signs his name on his National Letter of Intent.
The second of the two talented Jamarions is cornerback Jamarion Vincent, who is currently listed as the No. 196 player in the ESPN300. Vincent is a true lockdown corner who currently plays his high school ball in Waco, standing at 6 feet 2 and 165 pounds. Although Vincent is currently on the lighter side, a year within Baylor's strength and conditioning program will help him put on the pounds and maybe get him to see early playing time. Cornerback is another position that Baylor has been particularly weak at this season. While players such as Levar Thornton Jr. have had their moments, the unit as a whole could use an influx of young talent. Vincent provides Aranda and the company with a sticky man-to-man corner who will look to lock down a team's best receiver.
Given his skillset, other big-name schools have kept up their pursuit of Vincent, but none stronger than cornerback coach Lamar Morgan and the University of Michigan. Vincent was just on campus for an unofficial visit at the University of Michigan on September 26th, but currently remains committed to the Bears. This is another recruitment I see coming down to the wire on National Signing Day but I still like the Bears here given they are the hometown school.
As always with recruiting, anything could change at any given minute, but if Baylor continues building their class and adding talented players like Jamarion Vincent and Carlton, they could potentially make a push for a Top 20 recruiting class nationally.
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Josh started covering Baylor athletics in July 2025. Prior to Baylor Bears on SI, he worked as an intern for TheMichiganInsider at 247Sports. Josh graduated from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, with a bachelor’s degree in economics, where his passion for collegiate athletics continued to grow after attending his first game in The Big House. Combining his analytical background and his affinity for collegiate sports, Josh enjoys providing his unique perspective on the shifting dynamic equilibrium of the collegiate athletics landscape. When not watching sports, Josh enjoys cooking a nice meal, running, and traveling to new places with his friends and family.