Sting Factor: August's biggest recruiting burns
August was another busy month of decommitments as 13 prospects that were committed to Power Five programs backed off those pledges. Many of them flipped to other schools while some remain on the market. Here is a look at the biggest stings of the month as we head into the football season.
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Anquon Fegans - USC
Overview: USC scored big when Fegans’ brother, Tre’Quon, announced he was transferring from Alabama to play for the Trojans. Shortly afterward, the 2025 high four-star safety pledged there as well. But only a few short months later, the Alabaster (Ala.) Thompson standout has decided to back off his commitment to the Trojans as Auburn, Alabama, Clemson, LSU and others continue pursuing him. It could have been a huge win in the Southeast for the Trojans, especially with his brother there, but it looks unlikely now.
Sting Factor: 8
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Dakoda Fields - USC
Overview: Early in his recruitment, Fields talked about not staying in California but staying relatively close to home for college, so it looked like USC was trailing others. But after visiting there and seeing the academic side - and that the school has one of the best business programs in the country - the Gardena (Calif.) Serra prospect committed. Only two months later, Fields flipped to Oregon and followed former Serra teammate Rodrick Pleasant, who chose the Ducks over the Trojans as well.
Sting Factor: 8
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Peyton Woodyard - Georgia
Overview: The five-star safety committed to Georgia in January and despite taking other visits - mainly to USC, Ohio State and Alabama - Woodyard stuck with the Bulldogs. But through the summer things started changing, first with USC getting him back on campus, and then a trip to Tuscaloosa was huge as Woodyard gets to stay in the SEC, play for an elite program and he decided to flip to the Crimson Tide.
Sting Factor: 8
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Jo’Ziah Edmond - Purdue
Overview: Purdue is absolutely loaded at defensive back this recruiting cycle, so that takes some of the sting away, but Edmond is really talented, he’s an in-state kid at Nappanee (Ind.) Northwood and coach Ryan Walters and his staff did a great job recruiting him to land a summer commitment. But if the Boilermakers are to turn a corner in the Big Ten - easier said than done - they need to keep away higher-level programs from their top commits. That didn’t happen with Edmond as he flipped to Michigan after being committed for just a couple months.
Sting Factor: 7
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Kai Greer - Stanford
Overview: Stanford is in complete rebuild mode (the Cardinal are just a field goal favorite over Hawaii this weekend) and the Cardinal are completely revamping how they run their offense, so a talented four-star offensive lineman like Greer is crucial. The coaching staff has done a great job recruiting offensive linemen in this recruiting cycle but more bodies are needed. So when the Waxhaw (N.C.) Marvin Ridge four-star flipped his commitment to Arkansas in recent days, it definitely was a tough one since Stanford needs talent across the board.
Sting Factor: 7
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Jay Lindsey - Mississippi State
Overview: When Lindsey committed to Mississippi State in April, the Butler (Ala.) Patrician Academy three-star tight end said that’s where he wanted to be, but when Alabama came in with an offer months later things began to change. The in-state pass-catcher took multiple visits to Tuscaloosa and ended up flipping his commitment to the Crimson Tide. For first-year Mississippi State coach Zach Arnett, getting Lindsey was a great find, but keeping him proved harder once the Tide got involved.
Sting Factor: 7
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Rydarrius Morgan - Florida State
Overview: Florida State scored a big win on July 4 when the Phenix City (Ala.) Central high three-star safety committed to the Seminoles as many believe Morgan could be one of the more underrated defensive players in the class. But after overtures from Alabama - and especially a visit to Tuscaloosa in the summer with his mother - Morgan flipped to the Crimson Tide. At the time of his pledge, Morgan said Alabama was all his mother would talk about and it was “only a matter of time” until he chose to play there.
Sting Factor: 7
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Nate Roberts - Notre Dame
Overview: Could Roberts have been the next Michael Mayer-type tight end at Notre Dame? That could have been a possibility as the 2025 four-star from Washington, Okla., committed to the Irish in June, and it looked secure since Notre Dame doesn’t usually deal with many decommitments. But only about two months later, Roberts was back on the market and the rumor was Oklahoma looked strong to keep him in-state, although the four-star tight end could be slowing things down and looking at some other visits, too.
Sting Factor: 7
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Elias Rudolph - Michigan
Overview: Rudolph did the double flip. When he was playing high school football in Florida, Rudolph committed to Michigan. But when he moved back to Cincinnati Taft, the rangy and athletic four-star defensive end flipped his commitment to Miami. The Hurricanes did a great job recruiting him and selling him as an edge rusher/outside linebacker as coach Mario Cristobal and his staff continue to collect talent. Michigan is loaded across the board, including at defensive end, so this isn’t a killer but Rudolph has special qualities on the field.
Sting Factor: 7
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Ric’Darious Farmer - Pitt
Overview: Farmer had an excellent relationship with the Pitt coaching staff as the Panthers landed his commitment on Christmas Day. But in the summer before his senior season the four-star receiver had taken an official visit to UCF and returned for another event as a flip looked imminent. That happened on the first day of August, and while it shouldn’t discourage Pitt from recruiting the state of Florida, UCF coach Gus Malzahn and his staff are putting together a strong group with Farmer and others.
Sting Factor: 6
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Gus Ritchey - North Carolina
Overview: After his commitment to North Carolina, the high three-star defensive end from Pittsboro (N.C.) Northwood admitted that he just kept thinking about NC State and wanting to play for the Wolfpack. So, less than two weeks after picking the Tar Heels, Ritchey flipped his commitment to their in-state rival and now it looks like his recruitment is locked in. He was committed for such a short time that UNC should be able to rebound as it’s already done a nice job at defensive end in this class.
Sting Factor: 6
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Noreel White - Arkansas
Overview: Ole Miss was on a major role in August, landing a bunch of commits that included five-star defensive end Kamarion Franklin, four-star quarterback Trever Jackson and White, who had previously held a monthslong commitment to Arkansas. White called Razorbacks co-defensive coordinator Marcus Woodson an “uncle” since he grew up with White’s father, but it wasn’t enough to keep his commitment as less than a month following his decommitment the four-star chose the Rebels.
Sting Factor: 6
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Brendan Zurbrugg - Northwestern
Overview: Caught up in the Pat Fitzgerald firing mess at Northwestern was the three-star quarterback from Alliance, Ohio, who had committed to the Wildcats just weeks before everything went down in Evanston. Looking for a new home and more stability, Zurbrugg found that at Oklahoma. And while four-star Michael Hawkins is already committed there it’s still a nice commitment for the Sooners, who add more depth and another talented QB. Northwestern is going through a reset, so it definitely hurts but the situation there remains unclear.
Sting Factor: 5