Sting Factor: June's biggest recruiting burns
Other than the time around National Signing Day, June has become the busiest time on the recruiting calendar. Hundreds of prospects make their commitments but many others also decommit. Here is a list of the 10 most impactful de-commitments of the month with a list of the other Power Five ones below.
In total, there were 29 Power Five decommits in the month:
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Chauncey Bowens - Florida to Georgia
Overview: This could end up being the biggest sting of the entire month of June because there is a decent chance Bowens could end up among the top few running backs in the entire class after moving way up in the last rankings cycle. The North Palm Beach (Fla.) Benjamin School standout has been excellent, looks great and in a running back class without a clear No. 1, Bowens could be the guy. It especially hurts the Gators since the four-star running back flipped to Georgia.
Sting factor: 9
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JJ Harrell - Tennessee to Mississippi State
Overview: This number could have been even higher but Tennessee is going to recruit the wide receiver position well and concern has been tamped down now with four-star Boo Carter in the class especially if he plays receiver because he’s such a talented prospect. Still, the Vols dipped into the state of Mississippi for Harrell in February and he looked like a huge addition but in June he decommitted and then pledged to Mississippi State. If he would have gone out of the SEC, this one wouldn’t have hurt as badly.
Sting factor: 7
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Maurice Williams - LSU to Houston
Overview: LSU landed a major commitment from Williams last summer and the pledge lasted for more than a year but as the four-star safety really started to inch closer to signing day and figure out what he wanted, staying closer to home was the biggest draw. In the end, location was the only thing that LSU lost out on here as the Pearland (Texas) Shadow Creek standout flipped to Houston in the latter part of June.
Sting factor: 7
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Zion Ferguson - LSU to North Carolina
Overview: The big winner here is North Carolina as the Tar Heels flipped the four-star cornerback from Gainesville, Ga., after a visit to Chapel Hill again this month. Ferguson committed to LSU last September and it was a big win because the four-star has tremendous length and instincts at his position but the Tar Heels kept sniffing around this recruitment and stayed right there along the way. Getting a four-star from the state of Georgia is big. Flipping an LSU defensive back commit to North Carolina, which has not had great defenses recently, is even more impressive.
Sting factor: 7
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Ivan Carreon - Texas Tech to Oklahoma
Overview: This hit could be doubly bad for Texas Tech since the Red Raiders are looking to load up with playmakers and Carreon definitely was one as he had 51 catches for 1,168 yards and 14 touchdowns in his junior season. Plus, it was a big early win for coach Joey McGuire but after being pledged since November, the four-star reopened things and committed to Oklahoma a day later. If Texas Tech can land five-star WR Micah Hudson, this one doesn’t hurt nearly as bad.
Sting factor: 7
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Tyseer Denmark - Oregon to Penn State
Overview: Whenever someone commits across the country early on there is always at least an air of suspicion as to whether it will stick over the long term. For the four-star receiver from Philadelphia (Pa.) Roman Catholic, it did not. After a commitment to Oregon last November, Denmark stuck with the Ducks and that program is on an upswing but Penn State kept recruiting him, kept after him and during June, Denmark flipped his commitment to the Nittany Lions.
Sting factor: 6
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Chris Davis Jr. - Ole Miss to Stanford
Overview: Last season, Ole Miss ran the ball 614 times and threw it only 387 so coach Lane Kiffin is going to run the ball and that means he needs talented players in the backfield. Davis was an in-state prospect from Picayune, he had been committed since March and it looked like a perfect situation for him in Oxford. But Stanford - and new coach Troy Taylor, who has been on a heater this summer - flipped him in June as now the state’s top running back is headed West.
Sting factor: 6
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Austin Simmons - Florida to Ole Miss
Overview: Simmons’ situation is definitely one of the more interesting this entire recruiting cycle. The four-star reclassified from 2025 to 2023 after being homeschooled and then flipped his commitment from Florida to Ole Miss where it’s expected he will play football and baseball. That’s a whole lot to digest and a double reclassification is certainly something to watch so we will see if it works out or not in a QB room that’s already loaded in Oxford.
Sting factor: 6
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Isaia Faga - Utah to Alabama
Overview: Utah did everything right here. The Utes identified a really talented player in the Southeast, landed his commitment, kept him locked into the class since December and it looked like a major steal for their 2024 recruiting class. But Alabama engaged with the Phenix City (Ala.) Central standout in recent months and it became clear the Crimson Tide had a really good chance to flip him. That happened in recent days but Utah still did everything right.
Sting factor: 6
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Luke Ferrelli - Arizona to Stanford
Overview: Over the last few months as college coaches from around the country descended on Carlsbad, Calif., Ferrelli emerged as a big-time player landing big-time offers. Texas A&M got involved along with many others after the three-star linebacker committed to Arizona on April 1. But it was the offer from Stanford that really made the biggest impression on Ferrelli and he flipped. It especially hurts for two reasons: The Wildcats need all the pieces they can get to become a major player in the Pac-12 and Ferrelli stayed within the conference.
Sting factor: 6
The other decommitments in June were: Hunter Moddon (Texas), Keonde Henry (Boston College), Tayvion Galloway (LSU), Fred Clark (Ole Miss), Brandon Booker (Baylor), Mason Dossett (Purdue), Markeis Barrett (Wake Forest), EJ Caminong (Washington), Landon Bell (Washington), Deryc Plazz (Penn State), Judah Pruitt (Rutgers), Rob Booker (Wisconsin), Sincere Edwards (UCF), Samarion Robinson (UCF), Vernon Woodward (Wisconsin), Andy Jaffe (Wake Forest) Chasen Johnson (Pitt), Brendan Zurburgg (Syracuse) and Romanas Frederique (West Virginia).