After a long and tough recruiting battle, 3-star S Amari Carter (Palm Beach Gardens, FL) committed to Miami over Notre Dame on Saturday night. Following that, 3-star CB Brian Edwards (Miramar, FL) decommitted from Miami on Sunday afternoon.

Carter, a star player at Palm Beach Gardens HS (Palm Beach Gardens, FL), was arguably Miami's biggest target on the board at Safety, so getting him is a big deal.

Edwards, a long and lithe athlete from Miramar HS (Miramar, FL), has the ability to play both CB and S. There have been rumblings about why Edwards dropped, but whatever the reason, he’s no longer in this class as of today.

With Carter committing and Edwards decommitting, Miami is in the same place they were a couple days ago: with 3-ish DB commits in this class, and needing more depth and talent at this position of great need.

Obviously, the Canes are still looking for DBs in the 2017 recruiting class, and will have to move quickly on to other targets. Here are some names to know moving forward:

First, let me say this: Miami didn’t drop Edwards. The staff is still contacting him and would like to get him back in this class. So, that’s a name to know right off the top.

4-star CB Latavious Brini. A 6’3” CB who was once committed to Georgia, Brini is the the top local talent at DB Miami is chasing. The Canes are in a good spot with Brini, but will look now to close the deal and get him committed in this class.

4-star DeAngelo Gibbs. This über-talented DB — a consensus top 50 player in this class — recently said that he was planning on taking an Official Visit to Coral Gables. Gibbs has all the talent in the world, and would without a doubt be a contributor at Miami from day 1. The Grayson HS (Loganville, GA) standout has a familiarity with Mark Richt, the longtime former Georgia coach. But, before you go dreaming of getting him in Orange and Green, Gibbs HAS TO visit Coral Gables. Until he does, Miami’s chances are no more than a dream. And, even when he does, Miami will have a seriously tough job on their hands to get this star player to commit and sign here.

Note: Gibbs transferred to Grayson from Peachtree Ridge. Mid-season HL’s from Grayson, Junior season HL’s from Peachtree Ridge.

4-star ATH/CB Christopher Henderson. This one-time Miami commit is still in play, but he’s widely thought to be Florida’s to lose at this point. A RB at the prep level, Henderson’s future is on the defensive side of the ball. Henderson recently said he’ll take an official visit to Miami, so there’s a chance he ends up back in this class. At least on paper.

3-star Derrick Smith. This Jacksonville native plays for Trinity Christian Academy, a school with a history of producing good DBs. TCA alum DT Kendrick Norton is a starter on the Canes’ D, so that’s a program Miami has recruited before. Smith has long been a “plan B” option for Miami, but with a spot open now after Edwards’ drop, he might be moving up into play for the Canes now.

Other names: CB Antwan Collier (Miami Southridge), CB Kaheem Roach (Miramar), A.J. Deshazor (Lake Gibson).

The above list is not meant to be exhaustive. There is always the chance that other options may avail themselves to Miami as this cycle continues.

With a current class of 4-star CB Trajan Bandy, 3-star S Amari Carter, 3-star S Billy Gibson, and 4-star ATH DeeJay Dallas, who could play on defense or offense at the collegiate level, Miami has a good group of DBs committed. But, this team needs more quality and depth at DB, so this staff will look to rebound from the loss of Edwards by getting more players committed at this position group in this class.

More on this in the coming weeks and months.

Go Canes