Arlington (Texas) Martin five-star cornerback Javien Toviano released his top five over the weekend featuring Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Texas and Texas A&M while also announcing his commitment date of Dec. 15.
In this edition of Ranking the Contenders, we’ll take a look at each school’s chance at landing one of the nation’s top defensive backs.
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1. LSU
Going into the fall, this recruitment was anyone’s race to win, and LSU has begun to lead laps in this metaphorical race’s latter stretch.
The Tigers hosted Toviano and his family twice during the 2022 season, including their win over Alabama in October. That paired with an all-in approach from the LSU staff to show an opportunity for both early playing time and NFL development has the Tigers sitting pretty heading into this recruitment’s final weeks.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH LSU FANS AT TIGERDETAILS.COM
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2. Michigan
Michigan has quietly stood in the shadows of this recruitment, but it would be foolish to discount what the Wolverines have done to position themselves in this recruitment.
After a summer official visit, there was some strong buzz coming out of Ann Arbor about Michigan’s chances in this recruitment, but they couldn’t ever push into the clear front runner territory. Can the Wolverines pull off some magic down the stretch as this recruitment’s darkhorse?
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH MICHIGAN FANS AT MAIZEANDBLUEREVIEW.COM
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3. Texas A&M
Going into the fall, Texas A&M was surging in this recruitment and had a case to be the frontrunner after hosting Toviano multiple times over the offseason along with the reviews that the five-star was giving about the program.
However, after a 5-7 season and some discomfort in the locker room, the Aggies have slipped in this recruitment. Despite losing Anthony Hill in November, Texas A&M has done a good job of playing damage control for its 2023 class, but can the coaching staff swing for the fences and connect with Toviano late? A December visit would be crucial towards that becoming a reality.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TEXAS A&M FANS AT AGGIEYELL.COM
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4. Texas
Texas has been hot-and-cold throughout this recruitment, and it appeared as though the Longhorns would have one final shot to host Toviano for their game against TCU, but the five-star never made it to Austin.
While communication has remained prevalent, Texas would need to get him back on campus for an official visit in the coming days to have a fighting chance at reaching the upper echelon of this list.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH TEXAS FANS AT ORANGEBLOODS.COM
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5. Georgia
After some confusion over an official visit that was ultimately canceled over the summer, Georgia dropped from contention in this recruitment and was never able to pick up any steam with Toviano as time went on.
With Georgia looking elsewhere in the secondary, it feels highly unlikely that Toviano ends up in Athens.
