Mario Cristobal and Miami move closer to landing elite LB with latest news

It's official, Miami is on the verge of a recruiting heater. The good news started last night when five-star wide receiver Nick Lennear decided that there was no need to delay the inevitable and committed to the Hurricanes.

Now word comes down that Kaden Henderson, the No. 1 linebacker in the country, has the Hurricanes in his top five. Miami joins Ohio State, Notre Dame, Texas A&M and Alabama. 

The announcement comes on the heels of Henderson visiting Coral Gables for an overnight stay along with many of the top Miami targets, mostly in-state players. Mario Cristobal hosted many of the prospects for a social event on Thursday and team workouts on Friday. Henderson told Gaby Urrutia of 247Sports that he was able to spend a lot of time with defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman about his potential future with the Hurricanes.

"Talking to Coach Hetherman, having the [defensive coordinator] as the linebackers coach, that means a lot just knowing he's going to put his linebackers first," Henderson told Urrutia. "I think how Coach Hetherman can take things to the next level, I think that's the biggest thing."

Henderson is already locked in for an officia visit on May 29th. He also has official visits scheduled to Texas A&M, Ohio State and Notre Dame and told Urrutia that a visit to Alabama still needs to be scheduled.

The blue-chip recruit from Tampa hasn't put a timetable on an announcement and plans to have a busy spring visiting programs outside his top five like Florida, FSU and Tennessee. He is expected to return to Miami in mid-April. 

Cristobal should feel good about where the Hurricanes stand with Henderson right now. He has bonded with the staff and his proximity to campus means he can visit Coral Gables more frequently than any other school in his top five. If Henderson has another great experience in April, it could make Miami the team to beat.