Will 5-star CB McClain sign with Miami? Coveted recruit still committed but noncommittal
The Cormani McClain saga will be over, one way or another, Jan. 15.
At least, it’s what the five-star cornerback is saying now.
McClain has been orally committed to the Miami Hurricanes for more than two months, but surprisingly decided not to sign a national letter of intent during the early signing period. Now, the Lakeland defensive back claims he will sign this month — before the traditional national signing day in February — and told ESPN2 during the Under Armour Next All-America Game on Tuesday he’s only considering Miami as his final decision approaches.
When asked which teams he’s considering other than the Hurricanes, McClain paused for a moment and smiled, then said, “That’s all.”
McClain, however, still has four official visits left to use, if he so chooses, and nothing can truly become official until signing day arrives next month. McClain can sign a national letter of intent ahead of time, but Miami can’t officially accept it until signing day, which falls on Feb. 1 this year.
He could also be referring to a grant-in-aid agreement, which is nonbinding for players but not the school. His only loophole to lock in with the Hurricanes now ahead of signing day is to enroll early, but 247Sports reported last month it’s no longer the plan for the elite corner.
McClain turns down nearly all interviews about his recruitment, so there’s virtually no clarity about what’s real, what’s misdirection and what’s still undecided in the last month of his recruitment.
If he does ultimately sign with Miami, McClain did play with a pair of future teammates over the weekend in Central Florida. Elite Miami Central edge rusher Rueben Bain and four-star Melbourne Eau Gallie cornerback Robert Stafford both were teammates of McClain’s on Team Speed at the Under Armour All-America Game, and spent much of the last week around the 6-2, 165-pound senior on practice fields and in other activities around Greater Orlando.
Even they came away unsure of exactly what’s going to happen in the next month.
“I really don’t try to focus on anybody’s business. I’m just over here minding business,” Bain said Tuesday. “We want the guys that want to be there, so if he wants to, we’ll take him. If not, we’re over here trying to play football.”
Stafford, who shared a position group with McClain all week, was more aggressive in his pursuit.
After Speed’s 14-7 loss in the Under Armour Game, Stafford hung around the field at Camping World Stadium in Orlando to chat up McClain and make one last pitch to the in-state star.
“I’m trying to get in Cormani’s ear a little bit. I want ‘Mani to join me at the U,” Stafford said Tuesday. “I just talked to him after the game, I told him, ‘Hey, c’mon, man. We can change it around, instead of going to a bigger place, which is cool, but all the top recruits like to go to Georgia, Alabama — stuff like that. If we can actually go back to Miami and bring it back up from the ground up, that’s funner to me. I like building stuff, so that can be way more fun.”
He also gave a blunt assessment of where he feels the Hurricanes stand in the recruitment: The blue-chip defensive back pegged Miami’s chances at “80 percent.”
“He don’t say,” Stafford said. “He’s kind of quiet, but he told me he loves Miami and I’m not going to say too much because I don’t want to — you know.”
It’s not even exactly clear who the other suitors are right now. During the early signing period, there were multiple reports of Alabama and Colorado, led by new coach Deion Sanders, trying to make a run at McClain. The Florida
Gators were also once viewed as the overwhelming favorite to land McClain. Ultimately, basically everyone around the country would like to add McClain to their 2023 recruiting class — he’s the No. 2 overall prospect in the 247 composite rankings for the Class of 2023 — and anyone can try for at least the next month.
Coach Mario Cristobal and the Hurricanes are just trying to hang on. At least for now, nothing has officially changed.
Said McClain: “I’m still in the same spot.”