Coral Springs, Florida — The late streak of flips by the Miami Hurricanes persisted into Wednesday, the opening day of the Early Signing Period. To finish off the 2024 class, Miami on Wednesday acquired five-star defensive tackle Armondo Blount from rival Florida State and four-star linebacker Adarius Hayes from Florida. The Hurricanes’ class was ranked third nationally and first in the ACC as of Wednesday night, according to 247Sports. Miami coach Mario Cristobal stated, “So far, the class of ’24 has a chance, again, to be what we strive it to be.” “Possibly surpassing last year’s class, the best in our history and the best in the conference.”
After a string of successful flips in recent weeks, Miami now had Hayes and Blount. The coaching staff’s dedication and persistence on the recruiting trail was demonstrated by the Hurricanes’ ability to flip five-star defensive lineman Justin Scott from Ohio State at the end of November and acquire running back Jordan Lyle from the Buckeyes on Monday. Blount remarked, “I feel like Miami has always been in my heart.” “Even after I flipped, it remained.” Cristobal declared, “It’s extremely important, critically important.” “Your recruiting strategy must mirror the core values of your program and the training you provide for your players. We believe in this collaboration that we are going to embark on, so this is our diligence in pursuing your son, and I think that’s a terrific approach to show parents that.
With most of the anticipated signees having already submitted their National Letters of Intent, the Hurricanes had essentially finished their 2024 recruiting class early in the morning. However, some held off a little bit longer. Madonna Chaminade Joshisa “JoJo” Trader, a four-star wide receiver, submitted his following a signing ceremony at his school. Hayes held his ceremony early in the day, announcing his flip as well. Dramatic elements of the day were brought forth by the Chaminade-Madonna signing ceremony. The top prospect in the class and five-star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith committed to Ohio State in December 2022, but he never completely ruled out Miami, Florida State, or Florida. When the star receiver announced his school on stage, he was wearing neutral-colored clothing and had a black bag with him. He ultimately chose to attend Ohio State, but he also admitted after the event that he had brought a Hurricanes cap to the platform. Kevin Riley, a talented running back commit, was also lost by Miami. The four-star halfback switched to Alabama, the team from his birthplace. However, the Hurricanes were able to offset Riley’s shift by persuading Lyle to switch his vote from Ohio State to Miami. Chance Robinson, a wide receiver from St. Thomas Aquinas and one of the Hurricanes’ initial recruits in this year’s class, claimed to have influenced Lyle. “I spoke with him on a daily basis,” Robinson remarked. “I love him. We have been doing this since we were four years old. Trader and Lyle were two of the nine players from Broward or Miami-Dade County schools that signed with Miami.
UM signed two players from Chaminade-Madonna (Trader and safety Zaquan Patterson) and four players from Fort Lauderdale powerhouse St. Thomas Aquinas (Lyle, wide receiver Robinson, defensive backs Romanas Frederique and Ryan Mack). Along with Daylen Russell, a defensive lineman for Miami Columbus, and Chris Wheatley-Humphrey, a running back from South Broward, they also signed Blount from Miami Central. Patterson stated, “We’re going to have somebody to lean on, just having that comfortability, that relationship early on, having somebody from your high school going to college with you.” The talent recruiting ambitions of Miami are far from over with the Early Signing Period. Three transfer portal commitments have already been obtained by the Hurricanes, but they are still in search of the final domino: a starting quarterback. Cristobal just mentioned that those attempts are still going on. According to Cristobal, “We stay active to fill a couple of different needs.”
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