Santa Claus arrived early, handing out Division One football scholarships to dozens of high school players in South Florida. NBC6’s Ari Odzer reports
Miami coach Mario Cristobal hasn’t yet taken the Hurricanes to an Atlantic Coast Conference championship game, but he sure has made a difference on the recruiting trail.
Cristobal closed strong to help Miami secure the ACC’s top-ranked recruiting class for a second straight year. According to composite rankings of recruiting sites compiled by 247Sports, Miami’s class ranked third nationally — behind only Georgia and Alabama — early Wednesday evening as the first day of the early signing period wound down.
Florida State was ninth in the team standings. The Seminoles had led the ACC rankings before two of their top recruits switched to other schools Wednesday, with safety KJ Bolden (14th in the 247Sports Composite) picking Georgia and defensive lineman Armondo Blount (22nd) choosing Miami.
Florida State rebuilt its program the last few years by relying heavily on the transfer portal, but a 13-0 season helped the Seminoles produce their best class in Mike Norvell’s coaching tenure.
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LEADER OF THE PACK
Miami landed seven of 247Sports Composite's top 73 recruits in defensive lineman Justin Scott (15th), Blount, wide receiver Ny Carr (48th), athlete Joshisa Trader (50th), edge rusher Marquise Lightfoot (60th), safety Zaquan Patterson (68th) and linebacker Adarius Hayes (73rd).
BEST OF THE REST
Sports
Florida State’s class is highlighted by cornerback Charles Lester (39th), quarterback Luke Kromenhoek (54th), tight end Landen Thomas (64th), running back Kameron Davis (69th) and cornerback Kai Bates (86th).
The only other ACC class to rank in the top 20 was Clemson at No. 12. Clemson has two of the nation’s top 21 overall recruits according to the 247Sports Composite in linebacker Sammy Brown (16th) and wide receiver Bryant Wesco (21st).
North Carolina and North Carolina State both have classes in the top 30. So does Stanford, a Pac-12 member heading to the ACC next season.
UNDER THE RADAR
Georgia Tech had a top-40 class that ranks sixth out of the 14 teams that played in the ACC this season. That’s an impressive climb for a program that ranked 12th in the ACC and 62nd overall last year.
Louisville’s class is ranked 12th in the ACC and outside the top 50 nationwide, which seems pretty low for a team that reached the conference championship game this season. But the portal means teams don’t have to rely so much on high school recruiting for roster construction.
Louisville has been very active in the transfer portal over the last month with additions that include former Alabama wide receiver Ja’Corey Brooks, a former five-star recruit.
STARS OF THE CLASS
Scott and Blount were two of the four highest-rated prospects to select ACC schools. They both picked Miami to help give the Hurricanes arguably the best collection of defensive line recruits in the nation.
BIGGEST SURPRISES
Florida State got unwelcome surprises with the defections of Bolden and Blount. Miami also landed Hayes after he had been committed to Florida since late January.
