Five-star offensive tackle Mark Matthews is leaving South Florida in a stinging recruiting loss for Miami.
Matthews, the elite 2027 offensive tackle from St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, committed to Texas A&M over Miami, LSU and Georgia. The decision gives the Aggies one of the best offensive line prospects in the country and leaves the Hurricanes searching for another answer.
Matthews had been one of Miami's most important local targets in the 2027 class. He plays roughly 30 miles from Miami, which made this a recruitment Mario Cristobal and Alex Mirabal badly wanted to win.
BREAKING: Five-Star Plus+ OT Mark Matthews has Committed to Texas A&M, he tells me for @Rivals⁰⁰The 6’6 300 OT chose the Aggies over Miami, Georgia, and LSU
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) May 15, 2026
He’s ranked the No. 1 OT in the 2027 Rivals300 https://t.co/MGozxifYSS pic.twitter.com/0bJ8HHx2j9
Texas A&M wins the five-star tackle battle Miami badly wanted to finish
The 6-foot-5, 300-pound tackle is ranked No. 3 overall, No. 1 among offensive tackles and No. 1 in Florida by 247Sports. The 247Sports Composite has him No. 5 overall, No. 1 at tackle and No. 1 in the state.
Miami spent months in strong position and continued pushing hard near the end, but Texas A&M took the lead down the stretch. Matthews visited all four finalists this spring, including multiple trips to Miami and Texas A&M, before the Aggies created enough momentum to win the commitment.
Cristobal has built the Hurricanes around the line of scrimmage. Miami's best recruiting wins under him have often started up front. Matthews was perfect for what Miami likes to do.
Miami still has one of the better early classes in the 2027 cycle, and this miss does not erase that. The Hurricanes already have offensive line commitments from Sean Tatum and Tyler Ford. Tatum is a Rivals300 offensive lineman from Fort Pierce John Carroll who committed April 10, while Ford is a 6-foot-6, 315-pound lineman from Gainesville, Georgia, who committed April 16. But Matthews would have changed the whole feel of the class.
The loss also comes after Miami was involved with other top offensive tackle targets in the 2027 cycle. Five-star tackle Oluwasemilore Olubobola committed to Notre Dame over Miami and Texas A&M.
Texas A&M was already building one of the strongest 2027 classes in the country before Matthews' decision. On3 Industry Rankings place A&M's class No. 1 nationally and No. 1 in the SEC. The class already included several top-60 national prospects, including safety Kamarui Dorsey, offensive lineman Kennedy Brown, edge rusher Zyron Forstall, cornerback Raylaun Henry, safety JayQuan Snell and defensive lineman Myels Smith.
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