1,500-Yard RB Delivers Unfortunate News to Two Major College Football Programs

A recently rising 2027 running back recruit has made his college decision and left a pair of power programs moving on to their next recruiting plans. Of course, the recruiting cycle is far from finished even with a verbal commitment, as players cannot sign until November's Early Signing Period. But at least for the moment, mark one top 2027 back off the board.

Whisenton's Pick

Texas recruit Lathan Whisenton is the player who made his decision. Whisenton saw a recent leap in his recruiting ranking from Rivals, where he made the leap from the No. 29 running back in the 2027 class all the way up to No. 12. That places Whisenton as the No. 171 player in the national class in Rivals' rankings and makes him the third-highest ranked running back to have made a verbal commitment so far. He ran for 1,502 yards and 24 touchdowns in his junior season at Waco Midway High.

Whisenton gave his verbal commitment to Notre Dame and coach Marcus Freeman, who is putting together an impressive 2027 recruiting class. But now cast to the curb are fellow suits Florida and Texas Tech. Whisenton is just off unofficial visits to Florida and then Notre Dame and is slated for official visits to SMU, Florida, and Texas. It's unclear whether his verbal commitment will take those official visits off the board, or whether Whisenton will continue with them.

Recruiting Overview for Whisenton's Top Teams

Notre Dame is now sitting on the No. 7 class in Rivals 2027 national team rankings. The Irish have eight verbal commitments, with two being players in the Top 100 of the latest Rivals rankings. Whisenton is the lone running back so far in the Irish recruiting class. Notre Dame is also still working on a host of impressive recruits.

Texas Tech has fared even better in the recruiting race, with the Red Raiders currently holding the No. 4 national recruiting class. Tech has just six commitments, but one of those certainly moved the needle as the Red Raiders grabbed (at least for the moment) the national No. 1 recruit in defensive lineman Jalen Brewster. Tech hasn't taken any running backs yet in their 2027 class.

Florida is still getting moving on the 2027 class, with just three commitments so far, but that total has been good enough to net the Gators the No. 15 national recruiting class. New head coach Jon Sumrall hasn't yet added any running backs to his class either.

Of course, both Texas Tech and Florida are from states where the amount of local running back talent can be nearly staggering. Tech is favored for four-star in-state running back Jayshon Gibson by Rivals' expert predictions. Florida doesn't have an early lead for any notable in-state backs, but it's still early in the 2027 cycle.

Joey McGuire of Texas Tech struck out on a top 2027 running back recruit. | Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images