The earliest 512 addition to a Texas Longhorns recruiting class that closed with multiple Austin-area flips was Austin Anderson safety Yaheim Riley, who signed with head coach Steve Sarkisian’s program on Wednesday.
The 5’11, 180-pounder was an early commitment in the 2026 cycle, pledging to Texas in May over Baylor, Ole Miss, and TCU prior to taking his only official visit to the Forty Acres after canceling a planned official visit to Vanderbilt. Riley reported 18 offers, including Arizona, Arizona State, Maryland, Stanford, Texas Tech, Utah, and Washington.
Texas hosted Riley for a camp during the summer before his junior season, but he committed to Houston last December. After another visit to the Forty Acres and receiving an offer from the Longhorns in late March, Riley re-opened his recruitment in April.
The consensus three-star prospect is a three-sport star for Anderson, competing in basketball and track and field, while also playing both on all three phases for the football team, recording 80 tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack, three interceptions, and six pass breakups while catching two passes for 34 yards, both for touchdowns, and notching one punt return touchdown as a junior.
A consensus three-star prospect, Riley is ranked as the No. 1,151 player nationally and the No. 103 safety, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.
The Longhorns added multiple elite prospects at safety in the last three cycles, including a pair of five stars and two high four stars. Sitting behind players like Jonah Williams and Xavier Filsaime will give Riley significant mental reps and opportunities to grow as he begins to specialize at the college level.