Utah’s 2027 class picked up another Texas defender over the weekend, and this one comes with a little built-in chemistry.
Port Arthur Memorial defensive back Brandon Richards announced his commitment to the Utes during an official visit to Salt Lake City, where Utah hosted Kansas for its whiteout game at Rice-Eccles Stadium. With that decision, Richards becomes Utah’s 21st pledge and the program’s fifth from Texas.
He also joins a teammate. Memorial safety Darrod Jacobs, who committed to Utah in June, gives the Utes a second player from the same high school and another familiar name for Morgan Scalley’s future secondary.
Richards posted, “1000% committed #RNSB https://t.co/babAd7u5cQ” on October 11, 2026.
Texas continues to be a major piece of Utah’s class construction. The state now makes up nearly a quarter of the Utes’ commitments, with Richards added to a group that already includes Jacobs, Coppell cornerback Jaden Bibbs, Brennan safety/linebacker Aiden Martin and Grand Oaks receiver Darnell Jackson Jr.
Three of those five Texas pledges are defensive backs, which says plenty about where Utah is focusing in this recruiting cycle. The state footprint is broad, too, with prospects coming from the Dallas area, San Antonio and Southeast Texas.
At 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, Richards brings more than just another DB label. He has real track credentials, including personal bests of 10.84 seconds in the 100 meters and 21.37 in the 200, according to MileSplit. He also helped Memorial capture the Texas Class 5A state championship in the 4×400-meter relay this spring, running alongside Matthew Christian, Cam’ron Roberts and Tyson Barnes in a 3:14.69 finish that edged Texas City by half a second.
That kind of speed gives Utah a clear athletic base to work with, even if Richards still has the usual college-level transition ahead of him in coverage technique and consistency.
On the football side, Richards has played receiver at Memorial as well, and Dave Campbell’s Texas Football lists scholarship offers from TCU, North Texas, UTSA and Louisiana. He arrives in Utah with offensive experience and the plan to grow into a defender at the next level.
With Richards in the fold, Utah’s 2027 class now sits at 21 commitments. Utah leads the class with nine pledges, Texas is next with five, Arizona has four, and California, Idaho and Oklahoma each have one.
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