Recruiting Rumor Mill: Big weekend on deck as November nears - Rivals: Football & Basketball Recruiting

Nov 02, 2024

More inside on the contenders, upcoming plans for 4-star WR Donovan Murph

The latest on three-star WR Muizz Tounkara.

Curt Cignetti is 27-4 as an FBS head coach.

Intel on a new Rivals FutureCast for the Crimson Tide

Four-star Jared Curtis is ranked No. 13 in the 2026 Rivals250.

More inside on the contenders, upcoming plans for 4-star WR Donovan Murph

The latest on three-star WR Muizz Tounkara.

Curt Cignetti is 27-4 as an FBS head coach.

A loaded weekend means a ton of recruiting news and rumors are coming out as Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney has his second Recruiting Rumor Mill of the week.

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Recent visits to Illinois and Tennessee have left impressions and now Indiana has blown away Alston as the Hoosiers keep blowing out teams under first-year coach Curt Cignetti.

The 2027 four-star cornerback from Cincinnati (Ohio) Anderson loved seeing the “incredible” atmosphere in Bloomington as everybody was swinging their Cignetti towels and the trip only confirmed that the Hoosiers will be a real contender for him.

Position coach Rod Ojong stopped at his school recently as well and that had a positive impact for Alston.

After back-to-back visits to Indiana, the Hoosiers have to be considered the front-runner for Bardo especially since they’re playing so well this season. The 2026 three-star receiver from Mishawaka (Ind.) Penn feels “everything is just getting better for Indiana” and there is little doubt that the Hoosiers are definitely one of the front-runners – if not the top school – for him now.

Over the summer, Carlton visited Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Baylor and the word then was that he liked the visit to College Station the most. The 2026 four-star defensive end from Temple, Texas, was back at A&M this past weekend and though the atmosphere and the coaches were both “amazing” as the chatter is now that the Aggies are “pretty high” on his list and might be the team to beat.

Cal, Washington and Penn State are the three standouts for the 2026 high three-star cornerback from Rancho Santa Margarita (Calif.) Santa Margarita Catholic but the Golden Bears could be edging out the others after a recent visit.

What Crowder loves the most is that DB coaches Terrence Brown and Tre Watson have a long history of developing cornerbacks and safeties for the NFL and that could be giving Cal the upper hand now.

Ohio State’s stadium was the biggest and the loudest Cypher has ever seen and the coaches made it clear that he was “very wanted” in the 2027 recruiting class.

The Buckeyes are definitely one of the three leading contenders for the 2027 linebacker from Raleigh (N.C.) Millbrook with Georgia and North Carolina. He will be at Texas A&M in late November for its showdown against Texas.

Duckworth decommitted from South Carolina in August after a 10-month pledge to the Gamecocks as UCF emerged as the new front-runner in his recruitment. But South Carolina is not giving up on the 2026 four-star quarterback from Jackson, Ala., and Duckworth is definitely paying close attention as those two teams are now battling it out for his commitment.

In the end, Edwards’ recruitment could come down to a battle between Texas and Texas A&M. The 2026 four-star running back from Carthage, Texas, loved his recent trip to Austin and his weekend trip to College Station was incredible as well especially in the second half when he said it was “awesome” to see the Aggies’ dominance after halftime.

The message from coach Mike Elko and position coach Trooper Taylor was that Texas A&M is not messing around: They want Edwards to be a focal point in the offense and they would love to get the opportunity to coach him. After the weekend, the Aggies have moved up.

Texas has been considered a front-runner for Ellis and the Longhorns are still right there but his visit to Texas A&M was “something I’ve never seen before” and now the Aggies are top of mind in his recruitment. Like with many others, Ellis’ recruitment could be a battle between the Longhorns and the Aggies for the 2027 four-star receiver from Crowley, Texas as Texas A&M definitely “stands out” after that trip.

The 2027 five-star receiver form DeSoto, Texas got to meet with coach Mike Elko during his visit to Texas A&M over the weekend and the game-day atmosphere was a “crazy experience” for him. Texas has been considered the early front-runner for Feaster along with LSU but if the Aggies can keep up this momentum then his experience over the weekend could keep convincing him that A&M is going to be a major player in his recruitment.

Michigan has not yet offered the 2026 high three-star offensive lineman from Allegan, Mich., but he had some great conversations over the weekend with position coach Grant Newsome and Garvin remains “very interested” in the Wolverines. Visits to Notre Dame, Indiana and Kansas have also thoroughly impressed him this season and while those schools could have the edge in his recruitment, Garvin still wants to see a lot of places before making a decision.

Cal and Tennessee are the two early standouts for the 2026 high three-star defensive end who transferred from Las Vegas Bishop Gorman to Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne for his junior season. What might give the Golden Bears an edge is how focused the program is on developing the defense and how good Cal is on that side of the ball.

The high three-star receiver from Roswell (Ga.) Fellowship Christian School remains solid in his commitment to North Carolina but one team is making the biggest run at trying to flip him. Georgia Tech has been in Haynes’ ear that there is still a spot for him in its class if he decides to move on from the Tar Heels.

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The high three-star linebacker from Bartlett, Tenn., has been committed to Vanderbilt and Mississippi State in his recruitment but now he’s back on the board as two programs are vying for his services.

The Commodores are right in the thick of things especially after another visit there over the weekend as he could picture himself making some big plays against Texas that could have changed the outcome of the game.

Vandy and Tennessee are the two most involved for him now.

Iowa State, Texas A&M, Kansas, Missouri and Ohio State are some other major players in Jacobson’s recruitment but Miami is right there as well for two main reasons: He has a phenomenal relationship with numerous coaches there and he loves how the Hurricanes utilize multiple tight ends.

The 2026 high three-star tight end from Waukee, Iowa, could certainly stay in the Midwest for college but there is definite intrigue with the Hurricanes.

Alabama has been the front-runner in Jones’ recruitment and the Crimson Tide remain a major contender for the 2026 four-star running back from Pike Road, Ala., but now there is some significant competition.

Tennessee is also high but a weekend visit to Ohio State thoroughly impressed him and Jones has recognized that position coach Carlos Locklyn is recruiting him “very hard” for the Buckeyes.

Appalachian State, West Virginia, Boston College, SMU, Miami and Notre Dame are the lead group of programs for the 2027 quarterback from Miami (Fla.) True North Classical Academy and a recent trip to see the Hurricanes definitely stood out.

What impressed Katz the most was Miami’s dominance in the running attack and offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson’s ability to move the ball in different ways in the Canes’ blowout win over Florida State.

Katz will be at Michigan this weekend for the Oregon matchup.

LSU and Tennessee have emerged as the two main contenders for the 2026 four-star receiver from Hattiesburg, Miss., but after a recent visit to Texas A&M, the Aggies could now seriously be in the mix as well.

Texas A&M has to keep up the momentum with Keys but he loved the crowd and the offense under QB Marcel Reed.

The star 2028 quarterback is watching college football more than ever and while it’s too early to name favorites, Miami has thoroughly impressed him this season with Cam Ward running the offense as the Hurricanes make a major play for the Coconut Grove (Fla.) Ransom Everglades standout.

Lawrence wants to see Texas, Michigan, LSU, Louisville, Georgia and Penn State this offseason but another weekend trip to Miami definitely left a great impression.

A new offer from Alabama is going to play a vital role in Matthews’ recruitment especially after his weekend visit where he loved the communication with the players and how he sees the coaches caring for the players outside of football.

The Crimson Tide, along with Penn State and Ole Miss, are the three programs standing out the most now for the three-star defensive end from Harvest (Ala.) Sparkman.

After a weekend visit to Baylor, the Bears have emerged as the early leader in McCarty’s recruitment although there is still a long way to go for the 2027 defensive end from Houston (Texas) Cypress Falls.

Still, McCarty’s interactions with the players and the coaches and how genuine everyone was in Waco made a big impression as Baylor jumps out early.

Miami has become the clear front-runner in Miret’s recruitment especially after the 2026 three-star interior offensive lineman visited this past weekend for the Hurricanes’ convincing win over Florida State.

The Miami (Fla.) Southridge standout loved the environment inside the stadium as the fans cheered on the recruits about playing at The U.

There is a significant Midwest influence in Parliament’s recruitment with Nebraska, Kansas State, Iowa and Minnesota involved, but Alabama is now a serious contender as well especially after being in Tuscaloosa last weekend.

Parliament hit it off in a big way with position coach Chris Kapilovic. They talked about Parliament’s game, Alabama’s o-line roster construction and much more as the Crimson Tide became a main player for him.

The four-star offensive tackle from Mobile (Ala.) Williamson was committed to Alabama early in his recruitment but backed off that pledge and a month later he committed to USC.

But Colorado is making a major push for Smith as he took a visit to Boulder and saw “everything I needed to see” over the weekend.

The word is that Smith is “still locked in with USC” but on Tuesday he quoted a Jordan Seaton social media post where he said “future teammates” with the eye emoji.

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Wilson made his second trip to Alabama this past weekend as the Crimson Tide remain one of the leading contenders in his recruitment. The 2026 DE from Picayune, Miss., loved the hospitality for him and his mother by the coaching staff and coach Kalen DeBoer told WIlson he’d be personally recruiting him as well.

Coach Freddie Roach is also making it clear that Wilson is a priority as Alabama looks great with LSU and Texas A&M standing out as well. The Picayune recruit is looking at a possible visit to Nebraska or Florida State this weekend.