UTRGV football can check another first off its list.
Head coach Travis Bush and UTRGV football landed the first commitment in program history. Dickinson class of 2024 defensive back Nicholas Peace announced his verbal commitment to play football for the Vaqueros on Twitter on Wednesday.
Committed.🔒🧡@CoachAdayMac11 @CoachTBush @DickinsonFB @DonnieBaggs_ @STE_ELITE @UTRGVFootball pic.twitter.com/wg4jwUeD0g
— Nicholas Peace (@nicko7even) July 26, 2023
Peace, listed at 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, is a safety who excels in man-to-man and zone coverage, but has also shown the ability to line up at cornerback if called upon. He diagnoses plays from the last line of the defense and has displayed a willingness to step into the box and shut down the run with a quick, instinctive first step and power at the point of contact. He also has the ability to return and cover kicks on special teams.
Bush and the current UTRGV coaching staff — offensive line coach Jeff Bowen, defensive coordinator Brian Gamble and defensive back coach Adrian McDonald — traveled across Texas during the recruiting period earlier this year and extended offers to multiple players throughout the state. A handful of Rio Grande Valley high school football players received offers as preferred walk-ons.
UTRGV plans to conduct a practice season in fall 2024 before officially kicking off competition at the Division I level in fall 2025.