Hello, friends. It’s time for another Official Visit weekend! No long preamble, let’s get right into things.

Official Visitors

Miami is scheduled to host 7 Official Visitors this weekend. As always, visits could change, so that number may rise or fall. But, I’ll update this piece if it does. Miami is hosting 1 commit and 4 uncommitted/elsewhere committed prospects this week. Let’s meet them

Canes Commits

3-star LB De’Andre Wilder. A dynamic edge rusher, Wilder committed to Miami after his final HSFB game when he aged out of eligibility at the end of the regular season. Wilder is tall and thin at 6’2” 190lbs — kind of in the Jermaine Grace mold physically coming out of HS. Wilder is very good getting up the field in both run and pass rush situations. Wilder has been in contact with Oregon since Willie Taggart’s hiring, and his commitment to Miami may not be 100% solid. The reaction to this OV will be worth watching.

3-star OL Corey Gaynor. The most recent commit on the OL, Gaynor parlayed a stellar senior season into a Miami offer, which he quickly jumped on and flipped to the Canes from Minnesota. Gaynor profiles well as Center prospect moving forward, and should be a solid contributor on the OL in the future. Gaynor is 100% solid with Miami, and will use his OV to experience campus, and also do some peer-level recruiting while there.

Targets

4-star WR Jeff Thomas. The hottest prospect on Miami’s recruiting board, the electric Thomas is a player that has captured the focus of Canes fans. He dominated the Under Armour All-American game (3 catches for 148 yards and 2 TDs — yards and TDs were a record — and a 45 yard KO return), and has used that performance to step into the recruiting spotlight. At one time, Thomas had academic issues, but Miami — and others — are confident that he’ll be able to qualify. Thomas would bring a level of speed and playmaking ability that Miami could sorely use on offense and in the return game. Miami has been trending up as the favorites to sign Thomas in recent weeks, and a strong visit will only help their case. This is the visit I’m watching most closely this week.

4-star OL Kai-Leon Herbert. This Michigan commit attends Plantation (FL) American Heritage and was once coached by Canes CB coach Mike Rumph. This talented OT is a player that Miami could definitely use in the 2017 recruiting class. At 6’5” 284lbs, Herbert has the size to play right away, and very good skills to boot. While Herbert is committed to Michigan, the common thought is that Florida is the team to beat for his services. Miami makes their pitch to do just that this weekend.

3-star CB Brian Edwards. Round and round we go with this 6’3” Miramar (FL) player. Edwards has been committed to both Louisville and Miami at various times in his recruitment, so the real answer as to where he’ll head won’t come until National Signing Day. Edwards is a player that Miami could use at both CB and FS, with good height, length, and fluid hips for the position. Miami is embroiled in a recruiting battle with Florida for Edwards’ services — he’ll visit there next week — with Louisville (whom Edwards visited last week) in 3rd.

3-star S Tariq Carpenter. A UCF commit, Carpenter is a recent target on the board for Miami after S Billy Gibson’s decommitment. At 6’2” 191lbs, Carpenter has good size for his position, and brings good physicality to the field as well. Carpenter has been visited by Canes coaches multiple times, and will be traveling to SoFLA with his mom and step-father for his OV (parents on OVs means things are serious, to some extent). Carpenter has not yet received a Miami offer, but could be in line to get one soon. With an announced top-3 of Miami, UCF, and Georgia Tech, things could be in place for the Canes to swoop in late and get Carpenter in this class.

2-star WR Marshall Few. A preferred walk-on prospect, Few is a nice WR who played well in HS. He had more than 1,100 yards and 11 TDs as a senior. at 5’11” 180lbs, Few has decent but not great size for the position. He has interest from Army and Navy outside of his PWO offer from Miami. Few would be an upgrade over some of the other PWO WRs at Miami right now, but he profiles as a depth player at best.

Those are the official visitors this week. A reminder that recruiting is silly season, and secret/unannounced visits happen all the time (4-star OL/DL Tedarrell Slaton, maybe?). And, scheduled visits can fall through, as has happened many times before. But, as of now, those are the 7 players who are on the list to visit Coral Gables this weekend.

As per usual, I’m setting the Over/Under on commits at 0.5. What do you guys think? Let me know in the comments below.

Go Canes