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Good day to all!
Miami has its quarterback of the future, and he’s a gifted one.
The Hurricanes have welcomed four-star, dual-threat standout Jacurri Brown of Valdosta Georgia’s Lowndes High School to the Canes family. Brown becomes the first official UM signee of this early signing period.
QB (dual threat) Jacurri Brown, 6-4, 205, Valdosta, Georgia
Other suitors: Arizona State, Auburn, Florida, Virginia Tech, Cincinnati
247Sports composite: 4 stars, 286 national, 21 position, 26 state
Rivals: 3 stars, unranked national, 5 position, 37 state
ESPN: 4 stars, 152 national, 6 position, 15 state
Miami got its quarterback early in the cycle and hung on to him all the way, even after former offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee left for SMU last month and former coach Manny Diaz got fired Dec. 6.
Coach Mario Cristobal called him shortly after he officially became the coach later in the day, which assuaged Brown’s concerns the new regime wouldn’t want him. Of course Cristobal would, though: The Elite 11 finalist had a monster senior season, going 136 of 242 for 2,165 yards, 23 touchdowns and three interceptions, and running for 882 yards and 10 touchdowns on 174 carries, plus one catch for 21 yards.
The four-star quarterback even had an interception to seal a playoff win for Lowndes last month. At Miami, he’ll get to sit behind fellow quarterbacks Tyler Van Dyke and Jake Garcia, and develop as the Hurricanes hope he’ll become one of the most dynamic dual-threat weapons in the country.
Here’s the story I wrote on Brown for today’s Miami Herald. Nice (and talented) young man, and he’s ready to come in as an early enrollee in January.
Cristobal has certainly generated enough hope to fuel fans toward 2022. And the energetic coach must be feeling it, as he posted a GIF of a swirling hurricane, something Canes fans have seen in the past when good news was on the horizon.
Cristobal, who was named the UM coach Dec. 6, has basically had a week to try to secure the commits he knows are vital —and there were only seven of them when the clock struck 7 a.m. today for the start of signing day.
Here they come, Canes fans
9:02 a.m. Miami Hurricanes football announces signing of 6-1, 170-pound defensive back Markeith Williams, out of Orlando Evans High School.
DB (S) Markeith Williams, 6-1, 170, Orlando Evans
Other suitors: Alabama, Nebraska, Boston College, Florida, FSU, Ohio State
247Sports composite: 4 stars, 290 national, 25 position, 34 state
Rivals: 3 stars, unranked national, 34 position, 59 state
ESPN: 4 stars, 236 national, 18 position, 32 state
Miami keeps reeling in blue-chip safeties and Williams is the latest, bringing the Hurricanes the combination of ball hawking and hard hitting they always covet. Williams, who has been orally committed to Miami since August, finished his senior season with 60 tackles, nine passes defended and a fumble recovery.
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8:40 a.m. The Canes announce the signing of 6-3, 185-pound Murfreesboro (Tennessee) Oakland High wideout Isaiah Horton. Tyler Van Dyke and company have another four-star target to love.
WR Isaiah Horton, 6-3, 185, Murfreesboro (Tennessee) Oakland
Other suitors: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, FSU, Mississippi, Illinois
247Sports composite: 4 stars, 275 national, 42 position, 7 state
Rivals: 3 stars, unranked national, 85 position, 22 state
ESPN: 4 stars, 272 national, 39 position, 6 state
Horton started getting scholarship offers before he even started high school, but it took him a few years to actually start living up to the potential coaches saw. Once things clicked, he became one of the best wide receivers in the country, racking up 75 catches for 1,375 yards and 14 touchdowns across a pair of undefeated seasons at Oakland.
As a senior, the four-star wideout had 41 catches for 732 yards and seven touchdowns, and helped the Patriots win a second straight state title. He orally committed to Miami in July largely because of Rob Likens and decided to stick with the Hurricanes even despite the uncertainty around the wide receivers coach’s future.
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8:18 a.m.: UM gets its second signee in defensive back/athlete, “playmaker’’ (as the Hurricanes just called him) Chris Graves of Fort Myers Bishop Verot.
DB/Athlete Chris Graves, 6-1, 175, Fort Myers Bishop Verot
Other suitors: Mississippi, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, East Carolina, FSU, Minnesota
247Sports composite: 4 stars, 224 national, 9 position, 25 state
Rivals: 4 stars, unranked national, 37 position, 49 state
ESPN: 4 stars, unranked national, 30 position, 60 state
For the second straight year, Miami lands a dynamic two-way athlete from Bishop Verot and hopes to develop him as a long, speedy cornerback. As a wide receiver, Graves had 32 catches for 535 yards and six touchdowns in just seven games, and he added two interceptions, five passes defended, a forced fumble and two blocked kicks as a defensive back.
Graves, who models his game after Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn, orally committed to the Hurricanes in July in large part because of defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson, who coached Horn with the South Carolina Gamecocks. Graves flirted with other suitors in the last few weeks, but ultimately shut down his recruitment when he took a second official visit to Miami over the weekend to spend time around new coach Mario Cristobal.
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