Big Ten and Lone Star State programs have the attention of 2026 4-star EDGE Jamarion Carlton

Temple (Texas) four-star EDGE Jamarion Carlton received his first offer from Nebraska in Jan. 2023. Houston and SMU offered him a week later and his recruitment has skyrocketed since then.

Carlton now holds 22 offers from programs including LSU , Ohio State , Texas , Texas A&M and USC . Location will not be a major factor in Carlton’s decision, as the 6-foot-4, 217-pound pass rusher is focused on finding the best overall place for the next stage of his football career.

“I’m looking at schools to see if they’re a fit for me and if it’ll be a good place for me education-wise in terms of what I want to do,” Carlton told On3. “I am studying everything about the opportunities there. I look around a lot when I visit schools.”

Texas and Texas A&M hosted Carlton in late July. He also took a visit to Ohio State on June 12.

Programs from both inside and outside of Texas are showing strong interest in Carlton. Since coaches could begin directly contacting him on June 15, the No. 3 player in Texas has been hearing “a whole lot” from Kansas State , Nebraska, Texas, Texas A&M and Texas Tech .

“I don’t have a list of top schools yet,” said Carlton, the No. 36 overall prospect and No. 5 EDGE in the 2026 On300 . “I’m still looking around and trying to figure everything out. I’m just enjoying the process.”

Texas and Texas A&M want to keep Carlton home

Texas last had Carlton on campus on July 25. It marked his third trip to Austin.

The four-star enjoyed being able to spend more time with “all of the coaches” at both Texas and Texas A&M, who he visited a day later on July 26. One of the staffers he bonded with while visiting the Longhorns was defensive coordinator/outside linebackers coach Pete Kwiatkowski .

“He’s a very good coach,” Carlton said. “It’s close to home and Texas is a good school. They have a whole lot of good players and it was amazing watching practice again.”

“Watching the player-led practice was the best thing that I saw during that trip,” he added. “Also, it was great building a relationship with coach Steve Sarkisian and coach PK.”

Carlton had a good time in College Station as well. Like Texas, he has visited Texas A&M three times and plans to return for the Texas-Texas A&M game on Nov. 30.

Why Carlton is interested in the Aggies already is because of “how much I can relate to the coaches there.” He has built bonds with not only defensive line coaches Tony Jerod-Eddie and Sean Spencer , but also head coach Mike Elko .

“I like them a lot,” Carlton said. “When I first went down there, I was able to talk to most of the coaches and coach Elko a lot. When I was down there recently, I got to talk to a lot of the coaches again. Coach Elko is a good guy. I like the d-line coaches there too. They’re pretty good.”

Carlton is also interested in Ohio State and Nebraska

Ohio State is one of the schools pushing to pull Carlton out of the Lone Star State. He enjoyed his most recent visit to Columbus earlier this summer.

“That trip was nice,” Carlton said. “I liked taking a trip down there. There was great hospitality there and while I was out there, I saw the facility.”

During his first trip to see the Buckeyes, Carlton toured the campus and also participated in a camp. He got the opportunity to work and speak with associate head coach/defensive line coach Larry Johnson while at Ohio State.

“It was really nice to spend time with him,” Carlton said. “He’s a very wholesome man… I like him a lot. He was able to teach me some things during the workout.”

Nebraska is another program working to get Carlton to the Big Ten. He plans to go to Lincoln for the Cornhuskers’ game against Rutgers on Oct. 5.

Carlton still remembers when Nebraska offered him. It came after wide receivers coach Garret McGuire went to his high school to see him in person. The Cornhuskers offering him then “showed a whole lot” to the talented defender, especially since he had yet to play a game of varsity football.

“Their fanbase is crazy and their facility looks very nice,” Carlton said. “I heard they have a virtual reality room… I’d like to see all that.”

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