The Miami football program entered the beginning of the July 4 weekend expecting a commitment from four-star Palmetto wide receiver Jacory Barney, trending for Chicago five-star defensive tackle Justin Scott and trailing Ohio State for a commitment from four-star defensive lineman Marquise Lightfoot.
None of those projections materialized. Barney committed to Nebraska on Saturday, Scott who did not have a commitment announcement scheduled pledged to Ohio State on Sunday and Lightfoot flipped the script for Scott by committing to Miami late on Monday afternoon. Miami now has a top-20 recruiting class.
Barney had three crystal balls projecting him to commit to Miami before his commitment to Nebraska on Friday. The On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine projected the Miami football program with a 79.8 percent chance for a commitment from Barney. Barney is the 416th-ranked prospect, 35th athlete and 62nd recruit in Florida.
Scott had a crystal ball from Steve Wiltfong the 247Sports Director of Football Recruiting. Miami had a 70.7 percent chance for a commitment from Scott per the On3. Recruiting Prediction Machine. Chad Simmons of On3 stated, “5-star DL Justin Scott commits to Ohio State, pulling off recruiting shocker in the process.”
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Scott is the 14th prospect, third DL and the top player in Illinois in the 247 Sports Composite rankings. The decision to commit to Ohio State came after Scott took his official visits with the Buckeyes and Miami. The devastation after Scott committed to Ohio State dissipated 24 hours later with the Lightfoot commitment.
The crystal balls arrived for Lightfoot arrived only a few hours before he committed to Miami from Wiltfong and his 247 Sports colleague Allen Trieu. On3 has updated their projections for Lightfoot to 65.4 towards Miami. Lightfoot is the 67th prospect, sixth edge rusher and third recruit in Illinois in the 247 Sports 2024 composite rankings.
None of the prospects currently trending to Miami have commitments scheduled. The hope moving forward in the 2024 class is that Lightfoot will spur momentum for other recruits to make decisions soon. With the commitment from Lightfoot, Miami currently has the 18th-ranked 2024 class nationally.