5 months ago
DALLAS, Texas -- Jeremiah Smith sat astatine a podium connected Monday astatine Cotton Bowl media time amidst dozens of reporters and said successful nan measurement he ever did.
He was honest.
Smith talked astir beating Michigan and recovering from his late-season injury. He talked astir being fresh for this year’s College Football Playoff aft past year’s run.
And, erstwhile again, he talked astir being recruited from South Florida and his determination to astir play for Miami.
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Ohio State’s superstar receiver is group to look his hometown squad connected Wednesday nighttime successful nan CFP quarterfinals, and he admitted that, had Miami been amended successful nan years starring up to his recruitment, he’d astir apt beryllium a Hurricane alternatively of a Buckeye.
But Smith’s recruitment was an encapsulation of nan past 20 years of Miami football, and nan problem facing its program: Every programme successful nan federation wants to enlistee South Florida athletes. The Hurricanes conscionable haven’t done a beardown capable occupation keeping talent astatine home.
So what’s been nan issue, and what effect could nan Hurricanes person connected nan athletics if players so enactment home?
“I consciousness for illustration you conscionable can’t time off nan crib,” protect tackle Ahmad Moten Jr., from Fort Lauderdale, said. “And nan group who did leave, salute to them because everybody sewage to get their own. But arsenic they spot now, it’s conscionable like, ‘Oh, Miami’s back. Dang, I should person stayed home.’ And what I did, I was going to time off nan crib because I emotion coach (Mario) Cristobal and I took what he said. I believed successful my coach and that’s what made maine travel to Miami, enactment home.”
South Florida Talent
In nan past 3 years, 14 players from Florida successful each recruiting people (2026, 2025 and 2024) person been classed successful nan 247Sports composite rankings apical 100. Four successful nan 2026 people were South Florida recruits.
Every subordinate Cleveland.com said with, some astatine Ohio State and Miami, utilized nan word, “Different” erstwhile describing nan type of players that travel from South Florida. It was difficult to pin down, and yet truthful easy describable that anyone could understand it.
“Honestly, I consciousness for illustration we’re conscionable a different breed,” linebacker Wesley Bissainthe said. “I person nary clear mentation for you. God, I guess?”
The problem for nan Hurricanes successful nan past 2 decades has been keeping those players, possibly sent from a higher power, location to play football.
Only 1 subordinate successful nan 2026 people from Florida, Somourian Wingo -- who attends St. Augustine conscionable southbound of Jacksonville -- committed to Miami. In nan 2025 class, nary of nan 14 players classed wrong nan apical 100 went to Miami. Four of nan 14 pledged to nan Hurricanes successful nan 2024 class, but Smith, nan biggest target of them all, decided to caput northbound to Columbus.
Simply, arsenic he put it, Miami hasn’t been astatine a nationalist title level successful 2 decades. That’s why it’s been easier for immoderate to time off South Florida for greener pastures, citing a amended fit, and a much difficult situation for others to return on.
“You’ve seen Miami, you sewage to person that swag,” Bissainthe, from Miami, said. “You sewage to beryllium thing different astir you. And I consciousness for illustration we’ve been doing a awesome occupation this twelvemonth and conscionable trying to bring it backmost a small bit, trying to person nosy retired there. That’s really it. Have nosy and play pinch immoderate swag and beryllium aggressive.”
For those that chose to enactment home, nan prime was comparatively simple.
“It’s an astonishing emotion knowing that this is my goal,” protect extremity Reuben Bain Jr., from Miami, said. “This is my purpose: Coming backmost location and putting nan programme nan measurement it needed to be, and knowing that nan occupation is not vanished and conscionable being successful awe almost, conscionable seeing what’s happening now, what’s going to proceed to happen.”
Ohio State protect extremity Kenyatta Jackson, besides facing his hometown team, decided to time off location and caput northbound to play football. When he made his assemblage decision, he chose betwixt Ohio State, Oklahoma and Alabama.
When Jackson made that prime to time off Hollywood, Florida, he still felt nan propulsion to enactment section and play for nan hometown Hurricanes -- or, astatine least, different in-state school. He was besides speedy to note, for illustration everyone else, really talented players from nan area are, echoing sentiments astir nan type of recruits successful nan area.
“I heard it a batch from my recruiting process, but astatine nan extremity of nan day, you request to do what’s champion for you,” he said. “That’s why I chose Ohio State. I judge that Ohio State gave maine nan champion opportunity to make it, execute my dreams, my goals.”
Others added that players successful South Florida are different than elsewhere because of nan request for success.
“Honestly, I consciousness for illustration it’s conscionable nan need,” moving backmost Mark Fletcher Jr. said. “We request this shot for our players. A batch of these boys, it wasn’t football, it would beryllium jailhouse aliases extremity up dead. I consciousness for illustration it’s conscionable nan truth that we request this crippled to conscionable put america successful a amended environment, put our group successful amended places. So nan truth that we’re capable to do that, get that opportunity, a batch of these boys down here, we don’t return that chance for granted.”
Of course, each area -- Ohio, Texas, California, Georgia and a big of different states and cities consciousness their version of shot is nan best. Don’t mention that to those that grew up successful South Florida, though.
“The air, nan humidity, nan atmosphere, each that,” Moten said pinch a smile, stressing moreover pick-up games successful a section parkland look and consciousness different than different areas of nan country. “I tin decidedly opportunity nan speed, power, each that, conscionable each that into one. Like you travel to Texas, ‘OK, everybody’s strong.’ You spell to Cali, ‘OK, everybody’s fast.’ South Florida sewage everything.”
But there’s besides surely grounds to backmost up nan argument that South Florida does it best.
“We’re a different benignant of club, man,” Bain said. “We conscionable breed definite benignant of people, definite benignant of players. Put america anywhere, we going to survive, I consciousness like. So arsenic agelong arsenic you sewage that correct mindset, we going to travel in, wherever we go, we going to show up, show up and show out.”
Keeping recruits home
OK, truthful precocious schoolhouse shot successful Florida, specifically South Florida, does so nutrient elite players.
So why has ‘The U’ nary longer been what galore callback backmost to a not each that acold distant time?
Simply, nan easiest mentation is nationalist success.
Miami has won 10 aliases much games conscionable 3 times since 2004. Randy Shannon, Al Golden, Mark Richt and Manny Diaz mixed for conscionable 1 10-win play crossed 15 years.
Since Miami’s past nationalist title win, some Florida and Florida State person won nationalist championships. The Hurricanes’ first-ever triumph successful nan 4 aliases 12-team playoff came 10 days ago, against Texas A&M. Prior to that triumph successful College Station, nan past 2 postseason wins for Miami came successful nan Russell Athletic Bowl successful 2016 and a 2006 vessel crippled successful Boise, Idaho, sponsored by a machine hardware institution that has been defunct since New Year’s Eve, 2008.
Prior to this season, it’s adjacent to opportunity nan biggest trading constituent astir ‘The U’ was a hypothetical of what could be, simply because of what has been earlier galore of nan existent players were alive.
“I grew up connected Miami Hurricanes football, watching those players, learning astir nan history of nan team,” Fletcher said. “Sean Taylor, each nan awesome moving backs, Willis McGahee, Duke Johnson. And conscionable having my sanction attached to immoderate of those guys successful history for nan adjacent procreation to look at, it’s conscionable everything to me.”
Even still, contempt Miami being down, successful essence, since nan nationalist title nonaccomplishment to Ohio State almost a quarter-century ago, location exists a communicative for fans each crossed nan state -- including Buckeye fans -- that it’s not worthy nan clip to moreover enlistee nan area each that extensively.
In each recruiting people making love backmost to 2022, Ohio State has had astatine slightest 1 decommitment from nan authorities of Florida. Some, for illustration Fletcher, will person awesome roles successful nan matchup successful Texas.
The area has ever been a breeding crushed for immoderate of nan nation’s apical players, and eventually, high-level NFL draught choices, truthful it’s a foolish thought to simply disregard nan area outright. And yes, successful caller years, Miami has been pillaged by various programs crossed nan federation -- Ohio State included -- that travel into South Florida to return talented players distant from nan Hurricanes.
“I consciousness for illustration successful nan past years, sometimes we’ve fto South Florida talent get away,” Bissainthe said. “And I wanted to astatine slightest beryllium 1 of nan first to (say), ‘Why not enactment home?’ I consciousness for illustration I wanted to alteration that a small spot and conscionable put connected for my city, put connected for who I grew up watching.”
Miami players said there’s nary ill-will toward players from South Florida that time off who are simply doing what’s champion for them.
“Everyone’s journey’s different,” Bissainthe said. “It really sewage to beryllium successful you. That feline from nan different schoolhouse mightiness not want to enactment location and put connected for ‘The U.’ He mightiness want to spell elsewhere. He mightiness consciousness for illustration his chances are amended elsewhere -- there’s thing incorrect pinch that, that’s OK. But it’s conscionable a matter of conscionable uncovering them cardinal guys and conscionable trying to conscionable show them, ‘Yeah, you should enactment home. Why not put connected for your city? What’s amended than putting connected from wherever you’re from?’”
But, moreover arsenic players time off -- and proceed to do truthful -- there’s ever a thought astir what could’ve been.
“It decidedly feels immoderate type of measurement because, like, ‘Damn, you don’t wanna travel here?’” Moten said. “But they will see. You can’t thief everybody. Everybody don’t want to get put on. You can’t thief everybody.”
The early of South Florida
It’s not unfair to opportunity that Wednesday’s Cotton Bowl betwixt Ohio State and Miami is simply a proof-of-concept crippled for nan Hurricanes.
A loss, particularly 1 that looks disfigured for Miami, would support astatine slightest Ohio State pinch nan precocious crushed to constituent to.
A win, though, and it’s not unfair to ponder what benignant of battles could play retired successful South Florida successful years to travel -- particularly considering nan astir talented receiver successful nan federation admitted he whitethorn person been astatine Miami successful a different, much successful world for nan program.
Now, for players and coaches, it’s astir proving to those players that nan champion fresh mightiness not beryllium out-of-state, but mightiness beryllium conscionable down nan road.
“When kids travel here, I want them to really emotion playing for ‘The U,’” Bissainthe said. “I don’t want them to conscionable travel disconnected just, like, attention-wise, I guess. I want them to really bleed The U’s orangish and green. I consciousness for illustration that’s erstwhile The U is astatine their best.”
So erstwhile nan Buckeyes play Miami connected New Year’s Eve, it’s wholly reasonable to deliberation astir what a functional, ascendant recruiting unit could beryllium looming successful South Florida, and really it could effect nan remainder of nan sport.
Because nan Hurricanes surely are.
“I find myself, nan much I play and nan longer I’m here, nan much proud I get because nan much experiences I get,” Bain began. “And I benignant of find myself wanting to support each of nan champion talent home. I consciousness for illustration that’s anybody. I felt for illustration we breed nan champion -- and why not support nan champion astatine home? Because that’s what we did successful my class. We helped alteration nan programme around, small by little. I consciousness for illustration we sewage nan champion players successful nan country, truthful why not support them location truthful we tin beryllium nan champion programme successful nan country?”
