Recruiting Rumor Mill: Busy June continues across the country
Top prospects are squeezing in camps and school visits and there is an abundance of news and rumors coming in all the time. Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney offers up what he’s hearing as a busy June continues:
*****
MORE: Family ties won't play a role in Duce Robinson's recruitment
CLASS OF 2023 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State
CLASS OF 2024 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State
TRANSFER PORTAL: Stories/coverage | Message board
RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Info for 2022 series
*****
Auburn is making a serious play for Bain and it is a “huge” connection in his recruitment that assistant coach Roc Bellantoni coached his brother, Reggie, at FAU. Alabama, Miami, Oklahoma, Florida State and Louisville are the other front-runners for the four-star defensive end from Miami (Fla.) Central. But the Hurricanes could now have the biggest connection as Reggie Bain is now a graduate assistant for The U under coach Mario Cristobal.
*****
The four-star running back from Orlando (Fla.) Edgewater has confirmed reports that Alabama is the new leader in his recruitment after the Crimson Tide weren’t even in his top group just weeks ago. The Crimson Tide coaches have treated Baxter “like a priority” and the message is that he could thrive in Alabama’s offense. It also helps that former high school teammate Christian Leary is pushing the Tide on Baxter, too.
“I’m the type of back that plays at ‘Bama,” Baxter said.
*****
Alabama, LSU, Georgia and Tennessee are making the biggest impression on the 2025 cornerback from Loganville (Ga.) Grayson early in his recruitment and two big visits are coming up. Bell will visit Alabama on June 25 in the hopes of landing an offer from the Crimson Tide and he’ll be at Tennessee the following day as it remains early but it looks like an SEC battle brewing for the 2025 corner.
*****
Georgia is definitely a major contender for the 2024 four-star athlete from Buford, Ga., but so are Alabama, Ohio State, Oregon, Oklahoma and Clemson. A busy summer could be ahead with visits to Tennessee, Texas A&M, Michigan, Michigan State and maybe Florida. The College Station trip could be something to watch because Jimbo Fisher is one of Bolden’s favorite coaches from his time at Florida State. After all this, though, the Bulldogs could be the team to beat since Bolden is in Athens so often.
*****
NC State is now in the top two for the four-star safety from Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage after an excellent visit to Raleigh that went better than he could have even expected. From the coaching staff to the opportunity with the Wolfpack, Fagan is definitely highly interested in NC State but a decision is not expected soon since in-season visits to Ohio State, LSU and Miami are expected.
*****
Things looked headed in a certain direction for Glenn as Auburn, Mississippi State, TCU and Virginia emerged as the four front-runners and the Tigers especially looked good since he has connections to that SEC program and his real first name is “Auburn” but new offers and interest have switched some things up. Florida State is now a real contender, Florida could get more in the mix depending on what happens with Jaden Rashada and after a new offer from Ohio State, the Memphis (Tenn.) Lausanne Collegiate School standout is now planning to see the Buckeyes before a decision.
*****
His brother, Elijah, already plays at Tennessee and the four-star linebacker from Murfreesboro (Tenn.) Riverdale committed to the Vols in April but a new offer from Texas A&M intrigues him enough that a visit to College Station will probably happen. There is no sign or indication that Herring is in any way considering a flip but the door is slightly cracked especially if the Aggies get him on campus. Still, it’s unlikely anything would happen.
*****
Georgia, Texas A&M, South Carolina, Clemson and Florida are the top five for Howard but Florida will make his top three after a recent visit to Gainesville. The Jacksonville (Fla.) Andrew Jackson standout visited Georgia this past weekend and will be at South Carolina before the end of the month as the Gamecocks are a real contender in his recruitment.
*****
All of Hurley’s family are Auburn fans and the Tigers have been trying aggressively to flip the four-star cornerback from Alabama but the feeling now is that the Florence, Ala., standout is sticking with the Crimson Tide and is not considering any other programs. For a while, Auburn and LSU were working on Hurley and he seemed open to getting out and taking some visits but that has now been shut down.
*****
Alabama, Texas A&M and Florida are the three frontrunners for the Poplarville (Miss.) Pearl River C.C. linebacker who has really impressed the Crimson Tide coaching staff according to a source. Jefferson was just in Tuscaloosa and had a great visit and then he heads to the others over the coming weeks. A commitment is expected before his season.
*****
Alabama coach Nick Saban spent 20 minutes with the Lockhart family during a visit in recent days when the 2024 four-star linebacker landed his newest offer from the Crimson Tide. Lockhart committed to Ole Miss in January and his brother, Danny, plays in Oxford but Saban, defensive coordinator Pete Golding and outside linebackers coach Coleman Hutzler all watched Lockhart closely during the day and a tough decision could be down the road at some point for him.
*****
The massive 2024 four-star offensive guard has nearly 50 offers and the Tampa (Fla.) Tampa Catholic standout will get tons of intrigue from Southeast and in-state programs but Oklahoma will be a program to watch in his recruitment. Pierre-Louis has “loved them” growing up and remembers watching the Sooners beat Texas badly on his Oct. 8 birthday. It was his dream offer and now he has it.
*****
Alabama is going to be a major player for the No. 1 prospect in 2024 after his recent visit to Tuscaloosa where the trip was a “10 out of 10.” The Duncanville, Texas standout talked to coach Nick Saban about lots of topics from life after football to real estate as he and Saban started to really develop a relationship. The message from Alabama’s coach was clear: They’re going to make a serious run at Simmons. Visits to LSU and Texas have now happened after Simmons saw Bama.
*****
Georgia and Texas A&M are definitely two programs to watch as Smith’s recruitment continues and Tennessee had been high on the list but the Volunteers have not been talking to him as much recently. Vanderbilt, Mississippi State and Ole Miss are three others to watch for the Fulton (Miss.) Itawamba Agricultural four-star athlete who would also like to visit Auburn, Florida and Duke.
*****
It has been a wild few weeks for the 2024 running back from Longview, Texas as he continues to load up on offers but a few standouts have started to emerge in his recruitment. Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma, USC and Oregon look best at this point but with so much new interest coming in all the time, Tatum’s list could see changes coming.