Miami Football near unanimous losers during early signing period

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on a traditional A to F academic grading system. The Hurricanes came out slightly better than average.

"Grade: C+ | National rank: 34 “The Hurricanes turned a fast start into a top-10 class for the 2018 cycle, but a tough season on the field and loss of defensive coordinator Manny Diaz has resulted in a very tough 2019 early signing period and fifth-place finish in the conference. Four-star OLB Avery Huff out of South Florida power Saint Thomas Aquinas is a big win and hold. Four-star DE Jahfari Harvey will bring edge pass rush to Coral Gables, as could three-star DE Cameron Williams. Keeping No. 13 safety Keontra Smith close to home gives the class a physical defender and another ESPN 300 commit, as does flipping ESPN 300 cornerback Te’Cory Couch from Michigan. Under Armour All-America Game receiver Jeremiah Payton is a lengthy target with good ball skills who ranks among the top-10 WRs. On the heels of signing the No. 1 TE in the 2018 class, the Hurricanes have also landed another four-star TE in Larry Hodges, who lacks ideal height but could be a versatile weapon because he is a shifty athlete with good hands."

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There is no doubt that losing Diaz so close to the early National Signing Period had an impact. Some of those recruits were already having thoughts about flipping to other schools. The most prominent of those losses was four-star linebacker Anthony Solomon who was Huff’s high school teammate. Solomon signed with Michigan.

The Hurricanes were able to keep three-star linebacker Samuel Brooks who many think has a higher upside than his recruiting ranking. Brooks de-committed from Miami after Diaz announced he was leaving to take over the Heading Coach job at Temple.

Brooks re-committed about 48 hours later after Safeties Coach Ephraim Banda and Outside Linebackers Coach Jonathan Patke were named to succeed Diaz as Co-Defensive Coordinators.

Forbes David Ching wrote about where the Miami football program is overall and the season it’s had in addition to their 2018 season.

"“Nothing seems to be going right for Mark Richt these days. Between losing as many as 16 commitments this year, losing defensive coordinator Manny Diaz to a head coaching position…Richt’s Miami program needed some good news on Wednesday. That didn’t exactly come. The Hurricanes lost out on Zipperer and Summerall and currently sit between 34th (ESPN) and 45th (Rivals) in the class rankings, depending on which service you prefer. Blue-chippers Haselwood, Tyrique Stevenson, Khris Bogle and Mark-Antony Richards are still possibilities, but the outlook isn’t especially sunny these days in Coral Gables.”"

Miami has a lot of work to do with about six weeks remaining until the traditional signing day in February. If they get National Letters of Intent from the high profile players like Haselwood, Bogle, Richards and Stevenson then this class will be significantly higher ranked. All but Haselwood are from South Florida.

The importance of protecting your own region can never be overstated. Miami became a national football power because of Howard Schnellenberger initiating the “State of Miami.” The Hurricanes legendary Coach vowed that the players from Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties would sign with Miami.

Next. Surge '19 Miami recruiting class won't be made by early NSD. dark

Schnellenberger was the first to recognize the wealth of talent that exists in South Florida. Now everyone recruits the area that was once nearly the sole domain of the Hurricanes.

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