Five-star cornerback [autotag]Cormani McClain[/autotag], who had long been considered the Gators’ top priority in the class of 2023, announced his commitment to the Miami Hurricanes Thursday.
It’s a devastating loss for the Gators to an in-state rival on the recruiting trail and a massive win for a Hurricanes program that had cooled off after a hot summer. Coming into the evening, Florida was considered the frontrunner with Alabama close behind. Very few outside of Coral Gables believed that this would be the outcome, and it speaks to Mario Cristobal’s staff that things were able to get done despite all the outside pressure.
McClain is the unquestioned top defensive back in the class and is only ranked behind Arch Manning by 247Sports and On3 at No. 2 on both sites. Florida still has a top-10 class following this development, but the Hurricanes have leap frogged the Gators into the No. 8 spot.
BREAKING: Five-Star CB Cormani McClain has Committed to Miami!
The No. 2 Player in the ‘23 Class chose the Hurricanes over Florida and Alabama.
McClain is the highest-rated CB to commit to Miami in ranking-era history 🙌🏽https://t.co/zl2HaByby5 pic.twitter.com/Qyif8iUdUK
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) October 27, 2022
There’s no way to spin what is ultimately a major miss by Billy Napier and Corey Raymond into a good narrative for UF. Fortunately, five-star IMG Academy cornerback Desmond Ricks recently reclassified to the class of 2023, and most expect Florida to push as hard as it can for him after missing out on McClain.
They say that recruiting doesn’t end until the letters of intent are signed, but this should wrap things up between Florida and McClain. He’s visited the Swamp over half a dozen times, so there’s not much more for him to see before the early signing period.
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