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Making the case: Brendan Radley-Hiles, UCLA or Nebraska?

Now that the Class of 2018 is on the clock, several of the nation’s top players have started cutting their lists in advance of a commitment announcement.

Today, experts from the Rivals.com network examine where Rivals100 defensive back Brendan “Bookie” Radley-Hiles might end up playing his college football. The candidates are UCLA and Nebraska.

MORE: Making the case: Taron Vincent | Predictions on top Florida prospects

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The Situation: Radley-Hiles has had several top schools in the mix for his services, and while programs such as Texas, Michigan and Notre Dame still have an outside shot, it appears to be a battle between the Huskers and the Bruins. Radley-Hiles is a California native who transferred to IMG Academy following the conclusion of his junior season, and the question seems to be whether he’ll return home to California or continue to expand his horizons to chase his NFL dreams. With a decision set to come in July, we asked our team experts to state the case for their respective programs and let National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell issue a verdict.

UCLA BRUINS

“It was a bit of a surprise when Radley-Hiles named UCLA and Nebraska his top two earlier this month. UCLA took five cornerbacks in the 2016 class, and it's widely believed that because of that, their DB class this year would consist of only two to three athletes, all of which would be more of the long, rangy safety type. If UCLA does in fact want a corner in this class, though, and it deems Radley-Hines to be the one it wants, the Bruins should have a very, very good chance of locking him in. Radley-Hines has had a great relationship with Demetrice Martin for years, and he's known 2016 signee Darnay Holmes and his family – they played on the same 7-on-7 team – for close to his whole life. The fact that he moved away from the West Coast to Florida might make things more challenging for UCLA, but the ties to Westwood are still strong enough to haul him if the Bruins make a serious run at him.” – Edward Lewis, BruinSportsReport.com

NEBRASKA HUSKERS

“Radley-Hiles' visit to Nebraska's spring game on April 15 will be the fourth time he's visited Lincoln in the last year. He's not only former teammates with Husker signees Tyjon Lindsey, Keyshawn Johnson Jr. and Tristan Gebbia, but he's extremely close friends with all three as well. On top of that, he's developed a tight bond with head coach Mike Riley and has been close with cornerbacks coach Donté Williams for several years already.” Nate Clouse, HuskerOnline.com

THE VERDICT

"Radley-Hiles picks Nebraska for a few reasons. Obviously he has some old teammates and very good friends on the team, but also he’s shown he’s willing to leave home for the right fit. By heading across the country to play for IMG, he’s already proven he’s willing to leave home to get better. A lot of West Coast kids will talk the talk of leaving home, take a ton of visits and then play it safe and pick USC or UCLA. There’s nothing wrong with that at all, but Hadley-Riles doesn’t care about location or how far he needs to go for the right fit. He strikes me as that kid who will leave the comforts of home." - Farrell

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