Not much Miami Hurricanes football coach Mario Cristobal covets more than recruiting.
And not much the Canes covet more than a Cristobal signing class — as evidenced Wednesday by a second straight top-10 national class, possibly on its way to a top-5 ranking by the end of the night.
On Wednesday, off a 7-5 season, the coach’s well-documented flare for captivating the nation’s top high school players resulted in another superb haul on the opening day of the three-day early signing period for the class of 2024.
By the time Cristobal had finished his late afternoon press conference, UM’s 2024 class was at No. 7 in the 247Sports composite rankings, No. 8 in the On3 industry rankings and No. 5 in the Rivals rankings.
Cristobal, as expected, raved about his newest class after he walked into the Mann Auditorium, chugging from a disposable coffee cup before starting his news conference.
“The day is not done,’’ Cristobal said. “Today has been an awesome day so far, and it’s not over. The night is still young, there’s a battle or two maybe out there that is still going on, and obviously the transfer portal is something that we’re going to be very active in and have been so far.
“So far, the class of ‘24 has a chance to be what we strive it to be, the best in the conference and maybe the best in our history – maybe surpassing last year’s class, as we continue to push into the night.’’
Among their 26 signees (not including three transfers) at that point, the Hurricanes got two blue-chip players to flip their commitments down the stretch from not-so-beloved Ohio State: 6-4, 310-pound five-star defensive tackle Justin Scott of Chicago St. Ignatius and 6-0, 180-pound four-star Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas running back Jordan Lyle.
“Growing up, it’s everyone’s dream to represent their city,’’ Lyle said Wednesday. “Being the next great running back coming through the University of Miami, that was a dream of mine.’’
On Wednesday evening, Miami is expecting 6-3, 250-pound five-star defensive end Armondo Blount of Miami Central to complete the second part of a double-flip at his private signing ceremony and spurn the Florida State Seminoles for the Hurricanes, with whom he originally committed in September.
If Blount chooses Miami, that could push the Canes to a top-5 class by multiple recruiting sites.
While reporters were waiting for Cristobal to enter the auditorium, at 1:38 p.m., 6-4, 210-pound four-star linebacker Adarius Hayes of Largo flipped his pledge from the Gators to UM, pushing Miami up the rankings and giving the Canes a valuable second incoming linebacker for 2024.
“Wow! ”That guy is incredible,” Cristobal remarked. “He’s an old-school player.” ”He’s over 6-4 and knocking guys about.”
The Canes had hoped for a triple-flip signing class through Ohio State, but the nation’s top talent, wide receiver Jeremiah Smith of Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna, kept his word and stayed with the Buckeyes after Cristobal recruited him hard until the end.
Four-star running back Kevin Riley of Tuscaloosa County High, who committed to UM this week, moved from UM to Nick Saban’s hometown Crimson Tide after Saban secured Riley’s final official visit last weekend.
Miami, which was still looking for a transfer quarterback to replace the departing Wisconsin-bound Tyler Van Dyke, has found it in 6-7, 225-pound three-star Judd Anderson of Warner Robins (Georgia) High. He was the first Cane signee to be announced shortly after 7 a.m. He’ll be arriving in mid-January as an early enrollee.
“I’ve been through a lot in four years of high school, so moving on is a big step for me,” Anderson explained. “It’s lovely there. ”I can’t wait.”
The Canes signed three consensus four-star receivers, including Chaminade-Madonna’s JoJo Trader and St. Thomas Aquinas’ Chance Robinson.
UM’s bounty included 6-0, 185-pound Chaminade-Madonna second-team Max Preps All-American safety Zaquan Patterson, rated five stars by recruiting site Rivals and four by 247Sports and On3. He chose UM over elite programs such as FSU, Auburn, Texas, Michigan and Ohio State, and will be integral in helping to replace NFL Draft-bound Canes stars Kam Kinchens and James Williams.
And despite four-star/three-star defensive lineman Kendall Jackson decommitting from Miami to opt for Texas A&M on Tuesday, just 10 days after flipping from the Gators to the Canes, UM was poised to secure one of the top defensive line classes in the nation.
In 2022, Cristobal signed a vaunted offensive line crop, with a pair of five-star tackles. This time around, Cristobal, who helps coach the offensive line and understands the value of bodyguards, sackers and run-stoppers, focused on defensive linemen after losing starting defensive tackles Leonard Taylor III and Branson Deen to the draft and others to the transfer portal.
Cristobal secured the services of at least seven incoming defensive linemen, including Scott; 6-5, 220-pound four-star edge Marquise Lightfoot of Kenwood High (Chicago); 6-3, 280-pound four-star tackle Artavius Jones of Blountstown, Florida; and 6-4, 205-pound four-star edge Elias Rudolph of Taft (Cincinnati) High.
The coach, however, did not forget his quarterback protectors. Among UM’s new offensive line signees is massive 6-8 1/2, 340-pound Holmes Community College tackle Markel Bell, an intriguing addition.
“It starts with the human skyscraper Markel Bell,’’ Cristobal said.
Miami signed four players from St. Thomas Aquinas, and in all, seven from Broward County as of 2 p.m. and one from Miami-Dade.
Before Blount’s signing, there were 12 offensive signees, 13 defensive signees, and the nation’s top kicker, Abram Murray of CE Byrd High in Shreveport, Louisiana.
“We’re trying to start a pipeline: St. Thomas Aquinas to The U,” defensive back Romanas Frederique Jr. said at his morning ceremony.”
Chance Robinson, a four-star receiver who helped kick off Miami’s 2024 class in April by becoming the first South Floridian to commit and remained with it despite a late push from Ohio State, won four state titles in four years with the Raiders.
“This is a winning programme,” Robinson said of St. Thomas, “and that’s what we’ll provide.” Bringing in exceptional talent means a lot, and it is what will make the difference it around.’’
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