UTSA lands commitment from 6’5” defensive lineman Zachary Gilson

UTSA Defensive Coordinator Pete Golding gained an intriguing option for his future defenses following the Tuesday commitment of defensive lineman Zachary Gilson. The Sachse High School (TX) senior took to Twitter to announce his verbal commitment to Head Coach Frank Wilson and his program.

Gilson was a bit of a late-comer in the recruiting process as he received his three lone FBS offers over the past two months. The 6’5” defensive end was offered by Tulsa on May 24th before adding offers from UTSA and Louisiana Tech early in June after turning in impressive performances at both schools’ summer camps.

While Gilson doesn’t have the flashiest highlight film you’ll ever see from a defensive end, his measurables are impressive. His 6’5”, 224 pound frame was verified at a Nike camp where he also registered a 5.03 second 40 yard dash, a 4.55 second shuttle, a 26.1 inch vertical leap and a 35.5 inch powerball toss.

Despite registering six tackles for loss and four sacks last season, Gilson doesn’t quite have the twitchy acceleration to be a premier pass rusher but if he’s able to fully grow into his 6’5” frame then he could excel as a space-eating end in a three-man front. Gilson does show very sound technique on film and a source that was present at the same UTSA camp Gilson attended told me before Gilson’s commitment that they felt Gilson was the best high school defensive lineman at the camp.

Thanks to UTSA’s exuberant depth along the defensive line Gilson will have plenty of time to pack on weight and carve out his niche along the unit. If he grows into his height Gilson could give UTSA a type of defensive lineman the program hasn’t seen in the past.

Marking the seventh commitment for the 2018 class, Gilson’s verbal solidifies the Roadrunners’ position at fourth in the Conference USA recruiting rankings. Louisiana Tech (1st) and Rice (2nd) currently hold a comfortable lead over the rest of the conference while Southern Miss’s aggregate score sits a fair bit above UTSA’s in third place.