4-star LB Karsten Busch, the Louisville, Kentucky standout, announced his commitment to the Hurricanes on Wednesday during a live broadcast on Rivals' YouTube channel, choosing Miami over heavy pushes from Wisconsin and Vanderbilt.
BREAKING: Four-Star LB Karsten Busch has Committed to Miami, he tells me for @rivals⁰⁰The 6’2 230 LB was previously committed to Louisville ⁰⁰“I’m fired up to be a part of THE U!”⁰⁰https://t.co/sREQCctOmN pic.twitter.com/KP70g7iCMw
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) December 3, 2025
4-star LB Karsten Busch
Busch is a consensus four-star prospect and one of the most highly regarded players in the Midwest. Busch is listed at 6-foot-3 and 223 pounds and 247sports ranks him as an 89-grade linebacker, with a Composite score of 0.8922. They rank him No. 438 nationally, as the No. 33 linebacker, and as the No. 1 player in Kentucky in the 2026 class.
Busch had a huge 2025 season as a two-way player: 110 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, one sack and one forced fumble on defense, plus 13 receptions for 274 yards and five touchdowns on offense.
Busch originally committed to hometown Louisville in March 2025, but later reopened his recruitment. Wisconsin was widely viewed as the favorite for a time.
For Mario Cristobal and the Hurricanes, completing this flip is impressive. Miami lost to Louisville this year and that could have been something that prevented them from landing Busch. Instead, they kept winning — except for the SMU game — and stayed persistent in their pursuit of Busch. DC Corey Hetherman played a big role in getting the top player from Kentucky to commit.
There could potentially be a trend building of talented defensive players coming to Miami becuase they want to play for Hetherman. The Miami defense has turned things around after a poor season in 2024. That is mainly due to Hetherman and the staff (as well as the acquisitions in the transfer portal).
Busch joins a 2026 haul that already includes in-state linebacker Justin Edwards and hybrid LB/EDGE Jordan Campbell, giving the Hurricanes a trio of physical, four-star backers to build around.