There were so many top prospects on visits over the weekend that a second Recruiting Rumor Mill was needed this week. Here’s the latest from Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney.
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Clemson is now considered the team to beat for Anderson especially after his weekend visit there where every coach showed love to him and his mother.
Anderson loved the presentation from coach Dabo Swinney and he liked hanging out with all the other recruits. The Tigers are on a serious heater and the Roebuck (S.C.) Dorman could add to the class when he announces in May.
South Carolina and others are involved.
Clemson has quickly shot up the charts for the five-star linebacker from Loganville (Ga.) Grayson because on his weekend visit there the coaching staff laid out the “AtkNup Plan” to further build his brand. They detailed their vision for using him in defensive coordinator Tom Allen’s defense and Atkinson hit it off with coach Dabo Swinney, even shooting hoops at the coach’s house.
Georgia had Atkinson back on campus Tuesday, but the Tigers absolutely left a major impression.
A weekend visit to Washington went great as the Huskies brought in a loaded group of prospects and the four-star edge rusher from Duncanville, Texas, loved how the coaches would use him in their defense.
Washington has made a major impact but Georgia, Ohio State, LSU, Arizona State and Ole Miss are high on the list as well.
The 2027 four-star receiver from Woodbine, Iowa, could not make it down to Iowa over the weekend because he caught pneumonia but the Hawkeyes and Iowa State have emerged as the main two contenders in his recruitment.
After Blum gets back to normal, he’s planning trips to both programs as this clearly looks like an in-state battle brewing.
Rutgers, Penn State, Michigan and others remain involved with Branch but a visit to Oklahoma over the weekend has pushed the Sooners even higher and it now looks like they’re the clear team to beat.
The Taylor (Pa.) Riverside standout was shown he’s a top priority, he loves the culture of the Oklahoma program and the Sooners are now the clear frontrunner.
The four-star Miami linebacker commit from Carol City, Fla., had an excellent visit to Florida over the weekend. It was made clear how he’d fit perfectly in the Gators’ system on and off the field, and he had a one-on-one meeting with position coach Ron Roberts.
Through all that, though, as Florida and others pursue, the word is that Campbell remains “locked in” with the Hurricanes.
Crumel had one of the most memorable days ever during a visit to North Carolina recently when he got to sit and talk with both Bill Belichick and Lawrence Taylor. On top of that, the facilities, the rest of the coaching staff and the atmosphere around the program all stood out to the 2027 cornerback from Clayton, N.C.
The Tar Heels have definitely left a major impression that could be tough to top but Crumel plans to take his time in recruiting.
There is definitely some back-and-forth thoughts on Curtis’ recruitment as he has finished a visit to Oregon and is now at Georgia before finalizing any decisions with those two being the top teams.
The feeling is this: If this is an NIL play and also an opportunity to shine in Eugene after Dante Moore, then the Ducks win out. But the word is some people close to Curtis want him closer and that would mean a re-commitment to Georgia. From what I’m told, neither side is 100-percent confident just yet.
A weekend visit to Iowa went really well as coach Kirk Ferentz pulled Day and his father into his office after the junior day to offer, which meant a lot to the high three-star safety from Las Vegas (Nev.) Faith Lutheran.
The Hawkeyes have now joined the top list but there is a heavy West feel with USC, Arizona, Utah, Arizona State and Texas A&M as the other front-runners.
DeJean will take other visits and look at other programs but Cooper’s younger brother was back at Iowa this past weekend and had another great visit meeting with the coaching staff. The four-star athlete likes how much the coaching staff cares for everyone around the program and he also got to learn about the academic side as well.
Miami, Texas, Oregon and Ole Miss are among the programs that have offered Dunnigan in recent months but the Kansas commit has shown no signs of considering a flip – and he doesn’t have any other visits planned after being in Lawrence again over the weekend.
The Manhattan, Kan., four-star safety loved how hard-working the players were at practice and the word is he’s working with the coaches to target certain players to join this Kansas class.
Earlier in his recruitment, there was a feeling that Texas would be the team to beat for the five-star receiver from DeSoto, Texas, but that’s no longer the case. A person close to Feaster said Texas A&M, LSU, Alabama and USC are the teams to mainly watch with Miami, Oregon and Texas also involved.
The word is that Feaster definitely wants to play in warmer weather and that a recent trip to Alabama went well as he prepares for a visit back to Baton Rouge.
Just a few months ago at the Navy All-American Bowl, Clemson was not mentioned by Gray but after a weekend visit there, the Tigers are becoming a major contender in his recruitment. The four-star offensive lineman from Richmond (Va.) St. Christopher’s loves how many former players return to be on coach Dabo Swinney’s staff, and he loves the purpose-driven mentality of Swinney and OL coach Matt Luke.
South Carolina is a big contender and he has a visit to Tennessee soon, but Clemson is making a major impression.
Georgia, Notre Dame and Florida are the other programs to watch but after another visit to North Carolina where he met Lawrence Taylor and Julius Peppers, the Tar Heels are very much back in the mix. The four-star edge from Rolesville, N.C., loves the message he’s getting from coach Bill Belichick and the word is that, in the end, Griffin-Haynes might lean more toward staying close to home.
Penn State, Stanford, NC State and West Virginia are some other top programs to watch in Harris’ recruitment but Oklahoma shot up the charts following his weekend visit. The former Maryland commit and high three-star defensive end from Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin has the Sooners as one of his “strongest contenders” because he loved the intensity, passion and accountability inside the program.
A ton of visits will happen but Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M and LSU are mainly the ones to watch for the 2027 four-star quarterback, who had an incredible visit to Norman over the weekend and is already planning a return trip.
A big part of this experience was observing new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and assistant quarterbacks coach John Kuceyeski in action and the Shreveport (La.) Evangel Christian standout was highly impressed.
Houston also loves the OU Soul Mission and a talk with coach Brent Venables was good as the four-star will be back.
The four-star safety from Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin has been committed to Michigan since July and it could be tough to pull him away but his weekend visit to Florida went really well and the pitch is simple: Come be the next great defensive back in Gainesville. That’s a compelling pitch along with playing next to former teammate Hylton Stubbs in the secondary.
Visits to Michigan, Miami and Georgia are coming up next.
Kansas is now the front-runner in Jones’ recruitment after a great visit to Lawrence over the weekend and the message from that coaching staff is that they are waiting on him and whenever he wants to jump in the class, they’d be ready.
Visits to Missouri and Vanderbilt are coming up for the four-star running back from Jenks, Okla., and Oklahoma still looms large in this recruitment, too.
Offers are coming in fast for the four-star receiver from Leakesville (Miss.) Greene County and a weekend visit to LSU definitely has moved the Tigers to the front of his list. Mathews loved how the position groups worked and how welcoming everyone was in Baton Rouge.
LSU, Auburn and Texas A&M are the three main contenders right now.
South Carolina, Clemson, Penn State, Tennessee and North Carolina have been the five mainstays in Matthews’ recruitment and now Texas might get a look as the four-star cornerback figures out his recruitment.
The Cornelius (N.C.) Hough standout loved his visit to Clemson over the weekend and had an “incredible experience” and can’t wait to return for his official trip in May. After all those visits, he might be ready to decide and the Tigers will be there until the end.
