On Tuesday afternoon, Plantation (FL) American Heritage DB James Williams decommitted from the University of Miami.

Recently ranked 11th overall in the 2021 class by 247sports, the 6’5” 218lb Williams had been committed to the Canes since March 31, 2018. He’s a gigantic player in the secondary and could find a home there if his athleticism holds, or he could be a great OLB and grow into his frame further in time.

There’s no sugarcoating this one: it hurts. Miami still holds the #1 class in 2021 at this time, but this is a story we’ve seen far too often. Miami routinely has top 3 classes for the NEXT recruiting cycle, then decommitments and attrition bring that group’s standing and talent way down. It’s hard to think that Williams’s decommitment isn’t the start of the same movie over again for 2021.

Is there time to get Williams back on board? Yes, absolutely. But with a potential 5-star player in his class, you should fully expect all the usual suspects — Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Ohio State, etc, etc — to stat making moves here, if they haven’t already.

We respect decisions and wish James Williams the best in his future endeavors but damn man. This one stings.

Go Canes