Heel Tough Blog: Tar Heels Land 2026 OL Commitment For Second Straight Day

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For a second straight day, the Tar Heels have landed a commitment from an offensive lineman who took his official visit to campus over the weekend.

As he announced via social media, 2026 UR OT Eli Rickell has committed to the Tar Heels following his first-ever visit to Chapel Hill over the weekend. His visit came just a week after Tar Heel offensive line coach Will Friend offered him.

This past season at Wesleyan High School in Norcross, GA, Rickell earned 3A-A Private All-State first team and second team all-county honors for his efforts on both sides of the football. As a defensive lineman this past year, he finished with 34 total tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks in 11 games. The previous year, as a sophomore, he received 3A Region 7 honorable mention in his first season as a starter for a team that finished fifth in the state in passing yards.

Rickell is another unranked prospect that brings a lot of potential to the table as an offensive tackle. He is very athletic and it shows up when he is used as a pull blocker and at points in pass protection. His junior doesn’t show him in pass protection often, but his sophomore film shows plenty of promise for him, especially with how good his lateral movement and hand placement are. In run blocking situations, he does a good job of winning with leverage and, despite being undersized, he plays with the mean streak that he needs to finish a lot of run downs with pancakes. The biggest concerns with him will be size (6’5, 265 lbs.) and level of competition (3A-A Private), but this is still a piece that could be valuable for the Tar Heels moving forward if he can navigate the learning curve and keep that athleticism when he adds weight to his frame.

With his commitment, the Tar Heels’ recruiting is back up to 15 commitments, four of which come on the offensive line. The team’s 2026 class remains 19th in the overall class rankings and sixth in the ACC following fellow offensive lineman Mason Wilhelm being ranked last night in the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

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