Texas OL commit Jackson Christian goes in-depth on his path to pledging to the Longhorns

The newest member of the 2025 recruiting class — Port Neches-Groves three-star interior offensive lineman Jackson Christian — goes in-depth on the path that led him to commit to Texas on Monday.

PORT NECHES, Texas — The Texas Longhorns added their seventh commitment of the 2025 recruiting class on Monday when Port Neches-Groves three-star offensive lineman Jackson Christian announced his pledge to the Longhorns over in-state rival Texas A&M.

Although Christian never had a strict timeline for his college commitment, the 6-foot-5-inch, 309-pounder felt it was the right time to go ahead and shut his recruitment down. Christian had the information he needed to make his decision before he started the official visit process.

"I think it was about time," Christian said. "I can enjoy my summer and not worry about all that because I will be graduating early."

Christian ran down his recruitment with Horns247 on Tuesday, detailing the path that ultimately led to him becoming the seventh member of head coach Steve Sarkisian's fourth full-cycle recruiting class. The journey included Christian getting some much-needed reassurance last summer that he was a Texas-caliber prospect whom the Longhorns valued.

"I originally got offered by Texas State going into my junior year, then I got UTSA the next day, then I got North Texas," Christian said. "I actually got invited to one of UT's elite camps, and I didn't go because I didn't think I was good enough to go because I just had those offers. A few days later after I didn't go, Jeff Banks calls me and was like, 'Hey where have you been? I thought you were going to come to this?' I was like, 'I'm sorry. I'll come to the next one.'

"I come to the next one and I did pretty good. They showed a lot of interest. They really liked me and I got offered. I had some other pickups like SMU, [Texas] Tech, U of H [Houston] — everything like that. And then A&M came. They were nice. I have nothing against A&M. A&M's a great school. They have a great program, and College Station is a nice town. But Texas picked me up early. They showed me they wanted me. I had so many talks with Coach [Kyle] Flood and Sark and with my family and everything like that and I just felt like it was the right choice.

"I talked to some of the players like Cole Hutson [and] Connor Stroh. My dad is best friends with Kelvin Banks' coach in high school [former Longhorn Kenny Harrison, now the head coach at Humble Summer Creek]. I never really watched college ball much growing up, but I started getting into it more when I started getting recruited.

"So, yeah, this is where it ends."

The trajectory of Sarkisian's program going into 2024 was one of the main factors in Christian's decision.

"I told y'all this on my junior day [visit]: They're only going up," Christian said. "You can tell by their seasons. This year they went 12-2, last year they went 8-5, then they went 5-7 the first year they got there. You can see that they're going up."

As one would assume, Flood's track record of developing offensive linemen and his relationship with Christian also made it so easy for him to call Austin home.

"[The relationship] is really good. Coach Flood is a really good guy," Christian said. "I believe in what he's coaching. Actually, most of the stuff we do here, he has that at UT. We do the same things he does. That's a big step for me going there.

"I know techniques, I just have to learn some names."

Not only was the relationship a factor, but the early belief the Longhorns had in Christian was just as important.

"The big thing about that is after I won state, every college wanted me," said Christian, who helped Port Neches-Groves defeat Dallas South Oak Cliff to win the Class 5A Division II state championship in 2023. [Texas] got me before I was Jackson Christian. I really see that. They thought I was somebody before state."

While Flood gets most of the credit for offensive line recruiting, a large amount of the early relationship-building and dirty work is done by offensive line assistants Derron Gatewood and Mitch Zoloty.

Just like Flood, those two were crucial in Christian's commitment to Texas.

"When I went to the camp, [Gatewood] was the one waiting for me at the front," Christian said. "After I got my height and weight, he took me and showed us all around and everything, and he made sure we got into the camp. And, also, Mitch (Zoloty) is a really good guy. He's such a cool guy. But their relationship is really good with me."

Sarkisian was massive in this recruitment as well. Not only did Sarkisian connect well with Christian, but he connected well with Christian's family, too.

"They love him," Christian said. "Coach Sark is a really down-to-earth guy. The first time I got there, he told me his life story. You know his background and everything. I just felt like he was a really down-to-earth guy who knows what he's doing. They've been around Nick Saban a lot.

"[Sarkisian is] a great person and I think they're going to get me where I need to go."

Another interesting part of the recruitment is Christian's unique relationship with former Longhorn fan favorite and current Chicago Bears running back Roschon Johnson, who attended and graduated from Port Neches-Groves before beginning his career on the Forty Acres in 2019.

Christian watched Johnson before he shined as a running back for the Longhorns when Johnson was a record-setting quarterback for the Indians. Christian was in the building for Johnson's ceremony when he committed to Texas and was at his party for the 2023 NFL Draft.

Football brought the two together since that's where their families got acquainted.

"The relationship is really good between us," Christian said. "I'm helping out with his youth camp here. We always used to sit with his family during the games because my sister was in the band when he was in high school. They'd come over to my house or we'd do stuff like that and we'd talk. It's kind of crazy that it's full circle. I'm sitting here talking about graduating early, going to UT like he did."

Although Johnson didn't get to play with this year's Texas team that reached the College Football Playoff, he was crucial to the program turning things around under Sarkisian. Christian credits Johnson for that and sees plenty of similarities to the culture of the PNG program and the Longhorns.

"He just texted me the other day about how [Texas is] a great place to go and [about] all of the people there and everything," Christian said. "He's really the one that started off the tradition there: the hard-working tradition. I think that's what we have here. We have hard-working kids, grindstone kids that have a tradition and want to take pride in their stuff."

Now that he's committed, Christian is locked in with the Longhorns. He won't be visiting any schools going forward unless it's Texas.

With the Texas A&M official visit now off of the calendar, Christian's only visit on the schedule is his June 21-23 trip to Austin.

With his recruitment now out of the way, Christian can breathe a sigh of relief as turns his attention to the next part of the process.

"Actually getting to play college football," Christian said when it comes to what he's looking forward to next as a recruit. "I'm ready to compete and go against new people. I'm ready to get up there. I'm ready to be coached by one of the best."

Although he's only ever played at offensive tackle for the Indians, Christian projects best to the interior offensive line, which is where he'll begin his Texas career when he moves to Austin in January.

"They see me as a guard, but I believe I'm long enough to play tackle," Christian said. "They might rotate me in at center, but I can play anything.

He hasn't fully committed to a major yet, but Christian is looking into mechanical engineering. Texas has a strong engineering program, which was another factor in Christian's decision to pick the Longhorns.

"They have a great engineering staff," Christian said. "I feel like they're going to work with me, they're going to help me. Engineering is a hard thing to do when you're playing sports and they said they're going to help me and do everything they can to help me. If I need to change, I can change so I feel like they're really going to help me do what I want to do."

After facing a talented South Oak Cliff team in back-to-back years at AT&T Stadium with the state title on the line, Christian's only goal in 2023 is to help the Indians make it back to Arlington for a third season in a row.

After a lot of thought I am blessed to say, I am officially committing to The University of Texas. I want to thank all the coaches that recruited me throughout this process. Hook’em horns????@KJJFlood @CoachSark @loganwilson11 @CoachJosephPNG @ScaryMcCrary pic.twitter.com/zrVkcB3xQo
— Jackson Christian (@JackC_25) May 14, 2024

"I want to get another one of those," Christian said while pointing to the state championship trophy that resides on the PNG campus. "We went to state first and lost. That was a big upset. I just really want to go back."

Christian's scouting report from 247Sports national scouting analyst Gabe Brooks reads as follows:

"Big-bodied, physical O-line prospect with tackle experience who might be able to provide roster flexibility at the P4 level. Projects to guard in the long run, but does possess requisite arm length to play outside if needed. Thrives as a drive-blocking presence in the run game who locks on and tries to finish reps. Hand placement is generally a plus. Keeps paws inside the frame to aid steering strength. Displays adequate functional athleticism to get to targets on schedule as a puller and climber. Owns multi-sport reps in shot put and discus. More advanced as a run blocker than in pass pro at this point of development. Still working on balance and body control, especially when engaged. Gets upright at times and can flash more punch consistency. Projects to the P4 level as a potential multi-year starter who could develop into a pro prospect down the road."