Recruiting Rumor Mill: Prospects hit the road for spring visits

Greg Smith/Rivals.com

Prospects are back on the road and a ton of news has been coming out in recent days. Here’s the latest in this week’s Recruiting Rumor Mill.

RIVALS CAMP SERIES LOS ANGELES: Recruiting Rumor Mill | Gorney’s Takeaways | Stars shine at the Rivals Camp Series in Los Angeles | Top performers from the Rivals Combine Series in Los Angeles | Full RCS 2024 coverage/information

*****

RCS LOS ANGELES: Gorney’s takeaways | Position MVPs | Top performers from the Rivals Combine Series in Los Angeles

CLASS OF 2024 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State

CLASS OF 2025 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Team | Position | State

CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals100

TRANSFER PORTAL: Latest news | Transfer search | Transfer tracker/player ranking (football) | Transfer team ranking (football) | Transfer tracker/player ranking (basketball) | Transfer team ranking (basketball) | Rivals Portal Twitter

*****

After a visit to Ole Miss in early February, Amos committed on the spot as the Opelousas, La., four-star linebacker loves his relationship with assistant coach Pete Golding and others in Oxford.

But Alabama was the dream school growing up and in recent days Amos landed his latest offer from that new coaching staff. Alabama has him “guessing” in his recruitment now but he remains committed to Ole Miss.

*****

Auburn has been considered the clear front-runner for the four-star offensive tackle from Fairburn (Ga.) Langston Hughes and that could end up being the case but the word is Dice has a whole lot of thinking to do after an excellent visit to Florida State over the weekend.

Dice and his family had an “amazing” time in Tallahassee and the word is the Seminoles have “moved up truly” in his recruitment. FSU could now be the team to watch moving forward.

*****

The elite four-star receiver spent the weekend at LSU with five-star quarterback commit Bryce Underwood and many others so the Tigers could surge in his recruitment, but the word is that Ohio State leads the way right now.

Florida State is another program heavily involved with the Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin standout who backed off his Alabama pledge amid its coaching change but right now the Buckeyes look strongest.

*****

Florida could have the slight edge at this point for the 2026 four-star quarterback especially since he grew up knowing that program best and because he’s from Lake Mary, Fla., about two hours away.

But a big round of visits are coming up. Grubbs will be at Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State, Miami, Florida, Alabama and North Carolina through late April as the four-star remains open.

The future of coach Billy Napier in Gainesville will also be watched closely as Grubbs works through his recruitment.

*****

The visit to Clemson over the weekend was “one of the best visits” Harris has been on and the Tigers are shooting up the charts following his time on campus. Alabama had been the clear frontrunner for the 2026 four-star defensive end but the new staff has been pretty quiet with him, which opens up a big opportunity for the Tigers.

The Huntsville (Ala.) Jemison standout hit it off with position coach Chris Rumph as Florida State, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Alabama and Tennessee are the others to watch.

*****

Visits to Clemson, Georgia and Ohio State are expected to happen by the end of March but the word is among his early favorites only the Bulldogs are on that list right now.

The top-ranked 2026 running back from Woodberry Forest (Va.) Woodberry Forest School has Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Penn State and Florida State standing out but these are big visits coming up.

*****

Ole Miss, Miami, Florida State, Notre Dame, LSU, Tennessee, Florida and Missouri round out Howard’s top eight but the Gators are putting themselves in a very good position to land his commitment.

Coach Billy Napier and position coach Billy Gonzales want Howard to spend a day in Gainesville shadowing a player to get an even better feel for the program and the Gators laid out a detailed plan for him on and off the field. Florida is giving the full-court press and Howard sees it.

“We are very impressed with the way UF is recruiting me,” Howard said.

*****

A weekend visit to LSU has shot the Tigers maybe right to the top of the list for Jimcoily as Stanford, North Carolina, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Michigan, Texas A&M and Ole Miss also stand out in his recruitment.

The four-star safety/linebacker from Nashville (Tenn.) Lipscomb Academy set the bar high for his trip to Baton Rouge and everything was exceeded as the Tigers now hold the edge after this trip. Jimcoily’s relationship with position coach Jake Olsen is going to play a big role in his final decision.

*****

One of the top 2026 linebackers in Texas, King has Penn State, Texas, Texas A&M and Notre Dame as the early standouts in his recruitment. The Port Arthur (Texas) Memorial standout will be in College Station the last weekend of this month and then in South Bend in April.

The word is that the Aggies have the edge right now and that might not change but visits could be crucial before King gets ready to make his decision.

*****

The Lucedale (Miss.) George County four-star quarterback has been committed to Notre Dame since September and it doesn’t look like things are at any risk of changing.

Three programs in particular are working to flip Knight. Alabama, Colorado and Ole Miss are the three most involved with Knight although his only trip planned is to South Bend.

*****

The 2026 offensive tackle from Prosper, Texas, has been to Oklahoma a few times but his weekend visit was more detailed and he got to spend a lot more time with position coach Bill Bedenbaugh which really helped the Sooners.

It’s early but Krempin is already looking at a return trip to Norman as his list remains really long with Oklahoma, Texas A&M, SMU, TCU, Auburn, LSU, Arkansas, Tennessee, Nebraska and Oregon.

*****

A visit to LSU thoroughly impressed the four-star linebacker from Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek. Ole Miss is right there as well but the word is that Alabama could be very tough to beat here.

Metz’s mom got sick on the way back from LSU so the family skipped their Alabama stop but the Crimson Tide are out in front. Others will “have to work overtime” to beat them now in his recruitment.

*****

Ohio State has not offered the 2026 linebacker from Strongsville, Ohio, even after a recent visit to Columbus but Miller loved his trip there and felt he saw “what it’s like to be at the best of the best.”

Upcoming visits are planned for Kentucky, Louisville, Penn State, Indiana and Cincinnati as Miller’s recruitment ramps up.

*****

A summer commitment is being heavily considered and so an official visit being planned for June 22 to Mississippi State could be really telling. The Bulldogs might be taking a big lead for the four-star offensive lineman from De Kalb (Miss.) Kemper County.

A recent visit to Clemson makes things interesting and an LSU offer over the weekend definitely ramps things up even more. What Nash loved about Clemson from the staff to the small area “felt like home” and that could be helping Mississippi State as well.

*****

Oregon is definitely a team to watch for the 2026 cornerback from Knoxville (Tenn.) Bearden and if Smith wants to leave home then the Ducks could definitely be the team to beat.

But that will be the question moving forward – home or away – as Smith also has Tennessee, Notre Dame and Arkansas high on his list.

*****

Georgia remains a top contender for Taylor but an upcoming visit to Athens will be huge as he observes how new receivers coach James Coley interacts with his players on and off the field.

There is so much that draws the high four-star receiver from Geneva, Ill., to the Bulldogs from the connections there to it being an outstanding program, but his relationship with Coley will be key.

Trips to Georgia, Ohio State, Notre Dame and Michigan should happen by mid-April.