Miami and Mario Cristobal battling Texas A&M once again for a 5-star LB

The Miami Hurricanes may be at or approaching the peak of its powers once again, but do not tell that to Mario Cristobal. The head coach of the Hurricanes knows that there is work to be done, not just in ACC play, but on the recruiting trail as well. With a team Miami beat in the College Football Playoff in Texas A&M trying to poach players from all over Florida, Cristobal is a bit nervous about it.

This was the sentiment when EJ Holland told Josh Newberg about Kaden Henderson's recruitment.

"I still think Miami and Texas A&M are the two schools high on the list. Kaden kind of downplayed that a little bit. It was funny because I asked him about his conversations with Cristobal. I didn't even bring up A&M and he was like, 'Man, yesterday I was on the phone with Cristobal and he was telling me about how they beat A&M head-to-head, and he thinks it's a battle between Miami and A&M.'"

So yes, the paranoia is starting to overtake Cristobal a bit, especially after Mark Matthews' prediction.

"So Cristobal is definitely pitching that win in the College Football Playoff, so nice little jab there against the Aggies. But yeah, I still think it's Miami and Texas A&M at the top. I do think some other schools have definitely caught his attention. Notre Dame being one, LSU being another. Look, Miami has done a really nice job in his recruitment."

Here is everything Holland said to Newberg about where Henderson is leaning during his recruitment.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Henderson is the No. 3 player from Florida, the No. 1 linebacker in the nation, and the No. 24 overall prospect in the 2027 recruiting cycle. He has 47 official offers, but is looking primarily at these five schools: LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Texas A&M. Henderson has already visited LSU, and plans to visit the four other schools in question.

Does Cristobal really only have to worry about Texas A&M here, or are there other candidates for him?

Mario Cristobal seems to be quite nervous over 5-star Kaden Henderson

If we were to break these five contenders down for Henderson's services, Miami would be at the top, followed closely by Texas A&M. After that, the next cluster of teams would be Notre Dame third and LSU fourth, based strictly on the fact that Henderson has already visited the Tigers, and Holland mentioned the Irish right before them. Ohio State is still in the mix for him, but maybe only barely...

Where this could potentially get interesting is what coach is Henderson the most closely tied to in recruitment when it comes to Miami. If he is Cristobal's guy, then the chances of him staying in-state and suiting up for the Canes are quite strong. Cristobal is not going anywhere, as he has his alma mater in a great spot. However, if he is more of a Corey Hetherman guy, that could prove problematic.

This is because Miami fans cannot reasonably expect for the Hurricanes to retain their two rockstar coordinators in Hetherman and Shannon Dawson on the offensive side of the ball for another season beyond this one. Both will get serious opportunities at being a head coach. Tulane should have hired Dawson instead of promoting Will Hall from within after Jon Sumrall left them to take over at Florida.

Overall, Cristobal has every right to be paranoid about this. Texas A&M has shown in recent years it can go into any state and come away with its best prospects. Of course, the Aggies will back up the Brinks truck for just about anyone with four or five stars attached to their name coming out of high school. Miami will fork up some cash as well, but Cristobal has to do a better job of protecting his turf.

Right now, Henderson feels more likely than not he will be heading to Miami, but a lot can change fast.

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