Rivals Camp Series Atlanta: Recruiting Rumor Mill Surrounding LBs And DBs

ATLANTA – The Rivals Camp Series stop in Atlanta was loaded at the linebacker and defensive back positions and on Sunday there was tons of recruiting news coming from that group as well.

Rivals national recruiting analysts Adam Friedman and John Garcia Jr. have the latest on many big names.

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Arnoux was an early commitment for Tennessee but he backed off that pledge in February. Since then programs from around the country have been trying to get his attention. Arnoux recently visited Georgia and Georgia State and he will travel to Colorado this weekend for their spring game. When he talks to those coaches, they say they want players like him. The fallout surrounding Cormani McClain’s transfer is not impacting his decision.

At this point, Arnoux feels like Georgia, LSU, Florida State, and South Carolina are really pushing for him. He singled out Georgia defensive backs coach Donte Williams as one coach he feels like is making him a priority because he is giving him pointers on how to improve and explaining how he’d fit into their system.

The five-star is in no rush to accelerate the process, but it doesn’t mean he is not getting very familiar with some of his options. Ohio State continues to hold his attention and he was back in Columbus earlier this month.

Tennessee could be a program trending up for Atkinson going forward, following a trip to Knoxville. Texas had him on campus this month, too. Within state lines, Georgia continues to get familiar with the hybrid defender and vice versa following three trips to Athens this spring. Florida State, Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, LSU and North Carolina round out Atkinson’s top 10 from last fall.

It’s still early in the recruiting process for 2026 prospects but things can pick up quickly for elite prospects like Davis. He recently visited Ohio State and Auburn and he feels like those coaches are already making him a priority. The defensive schemes at those two programs have stood out to him and so has Oregon’s.

The Ducks or Colorado will host Davis this weekend. Davis is thinking about narrowing his focus to a few top contenders this summer.

Delane is fresh off his official visit to Virginia Tech. It was his first official visit and he really enjoyed seeing how everything works behind the scenes. His older brother, Mansoor Delane, is an important part of Virginia Tech’s defense and has been keeping him up to date on everything going on in Blacksburg.

When asked about a leader, Delane split his main contenders into tiers, with Oregon and Ohio State at the top, followed by LSU and then Virginia Tech and Maryland also hanging in contention. The Terps will host Delane for an official visit on May 31 followed by Ohio State, Oregon and LSU each of the following weekends.

The development and talent at Oregon and Ohio State really stand out to him. At LSU, Delane likes the opportunity on the field and the coaching staff. The same can be said for Maryland, too.

Delane has been planning on committing in July but is now thinking about pushing it back.

Fairchild has plenty of options but the 2026 standout isn’t in a rush. So far Georgia Tech, NC State and Auburn are among the programs catching his eye. Fairchild recently visited each of those contenders along with Alabama. He mentioned that Tony Gibson at NC State, Tyler Santucci at Georgia Tech and Kane Wommack at Alabama are building strong personal relationships with him already.

Fairchild would like to plan visits to see UCF, Pittsburgh, Indiana, Duke, and Florida State at some point in the near future.

The former USC commitment has been receiving SEC and ACC buzz since he went back on the market and that hasn’t slowed down of late. In-state Auburn and Alabama each have hosted him fairly recently and he continues to have high praise for the Iron Bowl options. Georgia, LSU, Clemson, Oregon, Miami and others are still competing for visits and a spot on his list, ultimately.

Fegans tells us he has no timetable for a decision at this time, so a commitment could come at any moment. The sooner it does, the more likely he is to stay within SEC country, it appears.

Hall has seen an uptick in his recruitment recently. The Florida native added an offer from Alabama about a month ago and he’s been hearing more of other schools since then as well. Florida, Auburn and Florida State are among the teams he’s been in contact with lately. Hall has taken recent visits to Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi State and is becoming more and more familiar with the coaches and campuses.

Florida State is in a good position to be a serious contender for Hall as the four-star prospect grew up a Florida State fan and his dad went to school there.

The Peach State native has all but narrowed his list to South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida State and USC. Florida, UCF and others are trying to get into the top group, but Hayward will take official visits to the top contenders this summer before coming to a decision on the first day of his senior school year in late August.

Of the group, it appears as if the Volunteers and Seminoles have a bit of an edge for the blue-chipper, who is prioritizing coaching stability when making his college choice. He says Tennessee is recruiting him as much as any program and Florida State was the dream school growing up.

Alabama pulled off a big win in March by landing a commitment from Johnson and the Tide aren’t slowing down in their pursuit of the talented linebacker from Georgia. Johnson feels very close with the Crimson Tide program and coach Kane Wommack. Johnson likes the new staff and how they’ve built a strong relationship with his family.

Auburn, UCF, Florida State and Tennessee are still working hard to flip Johnson and they seem to have a fighting chance. UCF will host Johnson for an official visit on May 31 followed by Alabama on June 7 and then Florida State on June 14.

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Four programs have the attention of Marcelin right now. He just recently visited Stanford and that trip left a strong impression on him. Marcelin was able to meet Andrew Luck and some other former players. They emphasized what Stanford can do for him on and off the field. He is looking at take an official visit to Stanford on June 21.

Marcelin has set up official visits to Miami on May 31, Pittsburgh on June 7 and Penn State on June 14. His cousin Jeremiah Marcelin signed with Pittsburgh as part of the 2024 class and they’ve been talking about the program a lot. Marcelin is also staying in touch with the Pittsburgh coaches.

Penn State has impressed Marcelin and his family during his recent visits. He is also close with Penn State quarterback commit and current teammate Bekkem Britza. Miami is in touch with Marcelin every day and he wasn’t shy about calling the Hurricanes one of his top programs. Look for Marcelin to announce a commitment at some point after his official visits.

The commitment to Alabama just hit the one-month mark for the blue-chip linebacker, who earned a Gold Ball Sunday in Atlanta. He reports enjoying commitment life and especially the relief of the recruiting process being behind him, though it doesn’t mean programs in SEC country have stopped calling the Georgia native. Oklahoma and Missouri, prime contenders for Metz ahead of his commitment to the Crimson Tide, remain among the programs not giving up on the versatile defender.

Tennessee has become more consistent in their communication, too, but Metz is not planning additional visits at this time.

The physical prospect from North Georgia has long teased a spring commitment in the month of April. Naturally, it means a decision is set to come down in the next week or so as the month winds down. Walker does have a trip set for the weekend, returning to Colorado for the Buff spring game, so connecting the dots there would project Deion Sanders and company in good shape.

What’s interesting with the rising-senior is that he does have an official visit to Stanford already on the books for the month of June. The Cardinal have become a dark horse in the long term recruitment for Walker, as Miami, Ole Miss and others remain in the mix.

Maryland landed a commitment from White back in January but they haven’t taken their foot off the gas when it comes to recruiting him. The big defensive back out of Florida has built relationships with multiple coaches at Maryland including head coach Mike Locksley.

White continues to feel good about his commitment to the Terps and said the coaches feel like he would start right now if he were already on the team. Florida State, Penn State and Oregon are staying in contact with White but he doesn’t have any visits planned right now.

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Auburn and Georgia appear to be at the top of the list for Winters but Tennessee, Miami and Florida are very much in the mix as well. He’s visited each of the schools fairly recently but has only set up official visits to Miami (May 31) and Georgia (June 7). Winters is looking for a program where he can maximize his potential, fits in with the team best, and feels most comfortable.

He said the two schools that fit that description right now are Georgia and Auburn because he fits in on the field and loves the atmosphere at each.