John Meredith III Reclassifies to 2026, Will Join Texas Roster This Season

The Texas Longhorns have received massive news ahead of the 2026 college football season.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian told reporters Thursday at SEC Media Days that five-star 2027 cornerback John Meredith III is reclassifying to 2026 and will join the Longhorns for the upcoming season as a true freshman.

Already set to have a loaded freshmen class this fall, the Longhorns just got even better with the No. 1 high school cornerback in the country now officially a member of the Texas roster.

“I’m more than ready. Looking forward to getting to campus and am ready to compete," Meredith said of the decision, per On3's Hayes Fawcett.

What Led to John Meredith III's Decision?

After transferring from Euless Trinity to North Crowley, Meredith was ruled ineligible to play his senior year of high school football after a 5-2 vote in the District 11-6A executive committee in Fort Worth last month. The ruling was seen as controversial by many fans, but it's now allowing Meredith to begin his college career sooner than expected,

The move makes sense for Meredith. Already seen as a future NFL prospect, he will now get to begin training with the Texas staff instead of spending another year in high school, which likely wouldn't have benefitted him as much in the long run.

"He provides great length, great speed, tremendous man-to-man ability," Steve Sarkisian said at SEC Media Days in Tampa. "Very confident, very aggressive. All the attributes you want in a defensive back... It's not a secret why he was a top two or three play in the country in the 2027 class. We'll see how far we can take him."

Additionally, the new five-year eligibility ruling means Meredith can get playing this upcoming season without having the worry about redshirting. Overall, the move makes a ton of sense for him while also benefitting the Longhorns from a depth perspective on defense.

Meredith now joins a Texas secondary that added Rutgers transfer cornerback Bo Mascoe and already returns Kade Phillips, Graceson Littleton, Jelani McDonald, Derek Williams Jr., Kobe Black, Wardell Mack, Warren Roberson and more.

The Longhorns have one of the most exciting young secondaries in the SEC, and Meredith's shocking addition is certainly a reason why.

Now a member of Texas' 2026 freshmen class, Meredith joins a group that already features five-star players like wide receiver Jermaine Bishop Jr., quarterback Dia Bell and linebacker Tyler Atkinson along with running back Derrek Cooper, linebacker Kosi Okpala, cornerback Samari Matthews and more.

The 2026 class was already seen as one of the best in program history. It's now hard to argue with that after the addition of Meredith.

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