Miami football should benefit NCAA extending recruiting dead period

The report that the NCAA has extended the recruiting dead period through May 31 from April 15 from Beth Auerbach of The Athletic should continue to benefit the Miami football program. Miami has established relationships with recruits in the most fertile metropolitan area in the country for high school football players.

Miami has two commits for 2022. Four-star defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland and three-star strongside defensive end Jamaal Johnson have been committed to the Miami football program since last summer. Cleveland is the 213th ranked player, 15th ranked DT and 26th ranked player in Florida in the Class of 2022.

Johnson is 645th, 39th and 83rd. Five of the top 100 players in the Class of 2022 are South Florida natives. Miami is in play for all five of those players. While the Hurricanes hope to be able to get recruits on campus in June into the summer, the ability for local players to be able to visit the Coral Gables campus is an advantage.

Miami signing the 12th ranked class in 2021 was in part due to the mortarium on players taking official visits when the NCAA suspended recruiting in March 2020 indefinitely. The annual showcase for the Miami football recruits, Paradise Camp is very much in doubt for 2021 if the moratorium is not lifted at the end of May.

The extension of the moratorium on in-person recruiting also means that Miami will not be able to host any players during spring practice or scrimmage. Advancements in technology have helped recruiting with zoom and facetime allowing virtual face-to-face connections between coaching staffs and recruits.

Miami head coach Manny Diaz has often spoken about the importance of building relationships. Miami director of recruiting David Cooney spoke about the importance of building those relationships as quoted by the Miami Herald earlier this month ahead of National Signing Day.

"“We’re able to identify those kids a lot sooner and then having the relationships that we have with the coaches at the parks, you know the guys who are going to shoot it to you straight.We know, pretty much, the landscape down here, we know who to go to and then it’s just a matter of finding out from the kid, Is this person really involved in your decision-making?”"

The advantage of local prospects being able to visit the Coral Gables, Miami campus comes without any of the Hurricanes coaching staff able to be a guide. Gaby Urrutia of Inside the U reported that several 2020 priority prospects have visited Coral Gables during the lockdown.

Edge rushers, five-star Shemar Stewart and four-stars, Marvin Jones Jr. and Kenyatta Jackson, four-star prospects, cornerback Earl Little Jr., linebacker Wesley Bissainthe, quarterback Jacurri Brown are offensive tackle Julian Armella are a few of the multiple recruits that have visited Coral Gables on their own.

According to a report from 247Sports.Com, the NCAA Oversight committee met earlier this month and recommended the extension of the dead period. At this point, it has to be expected that the moratorium will last indefinitely. The 2022 signing class could be one that occurs entirely virtually without players ever visiting campuses.