Recruiting Rumor Mill: Latest buzz surrounding top prospects
With the season well underway there is a ton of recruiting news and rumors going around and Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney has all the latest.
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Clemson, Miami, Oklahoma, Ole Miss and Baylor are the top five for the high three-star offensive lineman from London’s NFL Academy and a recent visit to Norman has moved the Sooners right to the top. Akinkunmi called the visit “amazing” in various ways, he loved the message more from Oklahoma than other schools and he hasn’t seen “anything like it before.” A commitment is coming up in October.
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Notre Dame is not the clear-cut leader for Alexander but “they are definitely up there toward the top” as the 2025 high three-star defensive end from Union (Ky.) Cooper visited for the season opener. Kentucky, Maryland, Virginia and some others will be involved with Alexander but the chatter is now that it might only be a matter of time until he commits since he loved how much excitement the staff showed during his visit to South Bend.
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The New Iberia (La.) Westgate 2025 four-star safety made it to Texas’ season opener and he loved the message from coach Steve Sarkisian and position coach Terry Joseph that they won’t hesitate playing freshmen and that the best players - regardless of class - will see the field. That could be a huge draw as former Westgate teammate Derek Williams Jr. is there now, however LSU and many others will still play a role in his recruitment. He was back in Baton Rouge over the weekend.
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Another visit to Oklahoma for the season opener went really well as the Sooners and Kansas State battle it out for Boganowski, who is also keeping Kansas and Florida State very much in the mix. The message this time from the OU coaching staff was that the Sooners will need big safeties with their move to the SEC and that could be appealing. But the Junction City, Kan., four-star athlete was back at Kansas State over the weekend and that was expected to be another intriguing visit as well.
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The 2025 receiver from Cocoa, Fla., was at UCF’s season opener and loves the energy and excitement inside the stadium and around the program. What also stood out was a talk Boggs had with coach Gus Malzahn about coming to play for him and catching touchdowns in his offense. That could be a big draw although Ohio State and Florida have also really caught Boggs’ eye early in his recruitment.
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Getting to see former Derby, Kan., teammate Avery Johnson get in the season opener for Kansas State was a thrill for Brame - and it could be a massive draw to the Wildcats as Johnson is expected to be the starting quarterback in the coming years. Kansas State is definitely going to be a player for the 2025 four-star tight end along with Oklahoma, Tennessee, Michigan and Auburn.
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If Texas wins out for the 2025 defensive end from Katy (Texas) Paetow it could be because of Brooks’ admiration for defensive line coach Bo Davis. Brooks was wowed by Davis during a recent visit and that could propel the Longhorns to the top as Houston and Texas A&M are the other early standouts.
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The 2025 high three-star cornerback from Missouri City (Texas) Fort Bend Marshall always feels like “family” when he goes to Texas and that’s again what stood out during a recent visit. He loves the defensive scheme of the Longhorns and the attention coach Steve Sarkisian and his staff show him definitely stands out. Florida State, Texas A&M, Oregon and Arkansas also stand out but Texas could be the team to watch.
“It was all looking like it could possibly be the place for me,” Chester said.
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Oklahoma and Tennessee are two others to watch for the high three-star receiver from Missouri City (Texas) Fort Bend Marshall but Houston shouldn’t be counted out, either. Ferguson was at Houston’s season opener and the “tons of love” he received from the coaches and players there makes the Cougars a real contender in his recruitment.
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Florida State could be the team to watch in Hilson’s recruitment because the Seminoles are making him a bigger priority but a recent visit to UCF also stood out to the 2025 four-star defensive end from Cocoa, Fla., who is developing a strong relationship with position coach Kenny Ingram. Penn State, Ohio State, Tennessee and Georgia would be the four others to watch now.
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The feeling Johnson got during a recent visit to Texas was like no other and the message from position coach Chris Jackson definitely stood out as the Longhorns are one of the top teams to watch early in his recruitment. The Hitchock, Texas 2025 receiver also likes Penn State, Texas Tech, Ole Miss, Kansas, Texas A&M and SMU right now.
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Up until recently, Lee’s recruitment had been focused on Pac-12 programs with Arizona, USC and Washington leading the way. A recent visit to Tucson went really well especially as he met with coach Jedd Fisch and the Wildcats showed a lot of love. USC has been rumored to be an early favorite but on Friday Georgia offered and that could change a whole lot. Plus, Ohio State is showing new interest so the Mission Viejo, Calif., standout could see his recruitment take off soon.
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Tennessee, Cincinnati, Missouri, Ole Miss, Auburn and a few other programs are heavily involved with the 2025 four-star athlete from Jackson (Tenn.) Jackson Christian but Kentucky is making it clear that it wants him just as badly - if not more. Mark Stoops made it clear to Mosley during the home opener that they were going to recruit him hard and they want him in Lexington and Mosley loved how involved the crowd was in the blowout win.
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After being committed to Notre Dame for about two months, the 2025 four-star tight end from Washington, Okla., is back on the market and he was in Norman for the season opener against Arkansas State. Roberts felt like “the whole state was there” since the stadium was so packed and he spent a ton of time catching up with numerous OU coaches. The message was about being part of something special in his home state and that’s a huge draw as the Sooners are very involved but Roberts said since his decommitment, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee, Penn State, Baylor, Florida State, Florida, Miami, Nebraska and Utah have all reached out as well.
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The 2025 four-star cornerback from Pearland (Texas) Shadow Creek made things interesting last week by going to the Houston game but the word is that Sellers might not want to stay so close to home for college. Sellers doesn’t want to leave the region quite possibly with a visit to Oklahoma planned for this weekend and then a trip to Texas the following week - those could be considered the front-runners - but it would be a surprise if he stayed and played for the Cougars.
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Georgia has always captured the attention of the elite defensive end in the 2025 class and the Bulldogs still look very good with LSU right there but it should not be lost on anyone that Stewart was at Alabama over the weekend and the Crimson Tide are making a play here as well. Those three definitely stand out but the New Orleans (La.) St. Augustine standout got to double dip this weekend since Texas is also high on the list along with Oregon, USC, Texas A&M and “believe it or not” according to a source, SMU as well.
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There was some thought about the 2025 five-star quarterback visiting Colorado this past weekend for the Nebraska home opener but travel plans couldn’t be made. However, the Belleville, Mich., standout will be in Boulder for its matchup against USC in a couple weeks. It could be a little double dipping to see both teams but Underwood is growing more interested in the Buffs especially after Shedeur Sanders’ season opener. Michigan will be tough to beat and LSU is right there as well but watch if Colorado doesn’t make a move here.
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Especially after Colorado’s big win over TCU to start the season, the 2025 five-star receiver looks more locked in with the Buffaloes than ever, more locked in with coach Deion Sanders than ever, but that hasn’t stopped numerous schools from trying to flip him. Topping the list staying involved are Ohio State, Texas, Tennessee, Florida and Alabama but Watkins has shown limited interest so far.
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A visit to Auburn for the season opener definitely left a major impression on the 2025 four-star linebacker from Enterprise, Ala., who has the Tigers and Georgia at the top of his list. On The Plains, Winters loved the energy of the players and the staff and didn’t see the “toxic energy” in any of the position rooms that he saw last year. Other than his two favorites, Clemson and Tennessee are high on the list as well.