Every recruiting class has them: The household names who are tracked breathlessly, who can send a fanbase into a whirlwind with one cryptic tweet, who become water-cooler (ie, message board) fodder because of two things: They’re really damn good — and they’re uncommitted. As the 2023 recruiting cycle kicks into another gear, 247Sports is profiling a slew of these players in the War Daddy series as our analysts handicap far-and-wide recruiting battles and tell you why these players matter on a national scale.
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If there’s one position that’s stock seems to be at an all-time high, it’s cornerback. In 2022, two cornerbacks were selected within the first five picks of the NFL Draft: Derek Stingley at No. 3 overall and Sauce Gardner at No. 4 overall. The year prior, it was Jaycee Horn and Patrick Surtain II who both went inside the top 10.
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Why are elite cornerbacks being valued more and more these days? The answer is pretty simple. With most modern day offensive attacks trying to air it out and push the pace, one of the easiest ways to combat all the game-changing wide receivers that everyone rosters is by finding elite cornerbacks who can shut down one side of the field with their quick feet, fluid hips, long arms, natural ball skills and high football IQ.
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The cornerback that checks all of those boxes off with ease in the class of 2023? That would be Lakeland (Fla.) Lake Gibson five-star Cormani McClain.
McClain is viewed by most talent evaluators and college coaches as one of the safest bets to come out of the high school ranks in a while given his tools (4.5 in the 40-yard dash at 6-foot-1.5, 165 pounds) and production (19 interceptions over the past two seasons). That’s in turn why he checks in as the first non-quarterback prospect in the 247Sports rankings sitting at No. 4 in the Top247 heading into the summer months.
While McClain has no shortage of options when it comes to trying to figure out where he will spend the next few years (and for obvious reasons given his upside), those connected to the recruitment believe that really only a handful of schools seem to have a fighting chance to land his signature. Below, we outline who all is alive at this stage in the process – while even making a Crystal Ball pick.
If you’re somewhat familiar with the recruiting landscape in the Sunshine State, you know that Polk County – and more specifically the town of Lakeland – has traditionally been a stronghold for the Florida Gators. From Chris Rainey to the Pouncey twins to Keon Zipperer and Lloyd Summerall, UF usually does pretty well in the Swan City and surrounding communities.
McClain hasn’t publicly named an outright leader, but behind the scenes, the latest intel suggests that he likes Florida, and a lot. The Gators have obviously had some coaching turnover in recent years going from Jim McElwain to Dan Mullen and now Billy Napier, but McClain doesn’t seem to be one of those recruits that’s really all that concerned about who is in charge and the ebbs and flows of a big-time college football program. Instead, he seems to be more mesmerized by the fact that he grew up pulling for Florida and that he has plenty of friends that play or played for the Gators. That’s likely why he keeps referring to Gainesville as “home.”
Over the past two months, McClain has visited Florida twice. That included once for the annual Orange & Blue game when he stayed overnight with mom. It’s unclear when McClain will return to UF, but there’s reason to believe that he will be on campus multiple times in June as he gets closer and closer to making a commitment. After all, he’s still building his relationship with assistant Corey Raymond, who has a strong track record when it comes to winning some high-profile recruiting battles.
Add all this up and it’s enough for me to fire in a Crystal Ball pick for McClain to the Gators. The race is far from over, though …
If there’s one obvious challenger to Florida in this recruitment, it’s Alabama. Nick Saban – for the most part – gets what Nick Saban wants in the Sunshine State, and that’s why the Crimson Tide have signed 15 prospects that played their senior seasons down in Florida over the past three recruiting cycles.
McClain was in Tuscaloosa for a Junior Day back in early March. By all accounts, the visit couldn’t have gone any better than it did as Alabama’s pitch hit home with mom, who was impressed with what the Crimson Tide does for its student-athletes both on and off the field. She also likes how Alabama gets guys ready to play on Sundays and more importantly puts them in position to get paid.
Will Saban’s track record with the NFL Draft be enough to lure McClain away from the Gators? Only time will tell, but recent history suggests that Alabama shouldn’t be written off for any blue-chipper until the ink dries during the Early Signing Period or on National Signing Day. It also probably helps that ace recruiter Travaris Robinson, who coached up the aforementioned Horn, is running point for the Crimson Tide in the recruitment.
If McClain decides to stay close to home and doesn’t go to Florida, then he’s most likely signing with Miami, who opened up the checkbook this winter to bring Mario Cristobal back home. Cristobal has a reputation of being a dog recruiter and it didn’t take him long to try and make a splash in McClain’s recruitment as he took a private jet to Lakeland earlier this spring to be the guest speaker at Lake Gibson’s season-ending football banquet .
McClain has actually visited Miami multiple times and has spoken very highly of UM staffers like Demarcus Van Dyke in the past, but the general feeling coming out of Coral Gables is that the Hurricanes don’t have as much footing as they once did in McClain’s recruitment . For example, the consensus All-American had talked about attending Miami’s spring game last month, but those plans fell through the week of the event and nothing has been rescheduled.
Could the Hurricanes get an official visit from McClain? Absolutely, but right now it seems like Cristobal & Co. are running third at best. Of course, McClain’s opinion on certain programs could change once games are played in 2022 and Miami is viewed by many as a title contender in the ACC. Mom is also from South Florida.
There was a time when it seemed like Georgia might actually lead to McClain. That was after the defending national champions got him up to Athens for an unofficial visit in late January. But it didn’t exactly take long for McClain to sour a bit on the Bulldogs as less than two weeks after he visited UGA, defensive back coach Jahmile Addae left to take a job at Miami.
Did a simple coaching change during an unprecedented offseason of coaching turnover really kill Georgia’s chance with McClain? That’s probably a bit of a stretch, but the Bulldogs are a school that really hasn’t been linked all that much to McClain recently. And that might be because UGA assistants Fran Brown and Will Muschamp (who now handle the secondary for Kirby Smart) appear to have zeroed in on a few other cornerback targets like AJ Harris and Daniel Harris to pair with Justyn Rhett, who is already committed to Georgia.
Still, there’s a reason why Smart has signed six straight recruiting classes that ranked inside the top five nationally and there’s a reason why the Bulldogs had five defenders selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft – he’s good at his job. Don’t forget the Smart factor when it comes to the battle for McClain.
The player comparison on McClain’s 247Sports profile is Cleveland Browns cornerback Greedy Williams. A case could also be made that McClain resembles the aforementioned Gardner or even Alabama corner Eli Ricks. But if you ask McClain who he models his game after, he will be quick to tell you it’s former Ohio State star Jeff Okudah, and that’s why the Buckeyes are in the hunt to land his services.
McClain was originally scheduled to get up to Columbus back in early April with his 7-on-7 team, the South Florida Express. That trip ended up getting canceled because of issues with an airline, but a source recently told 247Sports that they believe that McClain will still eventually get up to Ohio State for a few days because he’s very intrigued by the Buckeyes and what Ryan Day has built.
Can Ohio State edge Florida for McClain? It’s certainly possible, especially if Napier can’t get things off the ground in Year 1. What about Alabama? That’s a taller task, but it wasn’t too long ago that we saw the Buckeyes go head-to-head with the Crimson Tide (and others) for five-star defensive lineman JT Tuimoloau and win out.
