Miami recruits are taking notice of Gregory Rousseau’s monster season for Hurricanes
Elijah Roberts actually didn’t get out to Hard Rock Stadium often this year. The defensive end never gave a serious look to any other schools, but, for whatever reasons, he just didn’t see the Miami Hurricanes play in person so often this season.
He did, however, make the long trip up to Tallahassee earlier this month to watch Miami take on the Florida State Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium on Nov. 2. He went home with one big thought.
“I love what Greg’s doing right now,” Roberts said Thursday after helping Miami Columbus beat Coral Gables, 50-14, in the Region 4-8A quarterfinals in Miami.
Gregory Rousseau, the Hurricanes’ breakout star of the 2019 season, piled up a career-high four sacks against Florida State while Roberts watched from a crowd of Miami fans.
They’re wildly different prospects — Rousseau was 6-foot-6 and 222 pounds coming out of Hialeah Champagnat Catholic in the Class of 2018, while Roberts is 6-3 and 267 pounds — but Rousseau’s production this year is impossible for a future Hurricanes defensive lineman not to be excited about, even though there’s a chance Roberts could wind up at defensive tackle at the next level.
“I keep in touch with him,” Roberts said.
Rousseau is now up to 12 sacks and 15 1/2 tackles for loss this season. The defensive lineman leads the Atlantic Coast Conference in both categories and he has quickly become a player Miami — and particularly defensive line coach Todd Stroud — can sell prospects on.
Rousseau only arrived in Coral Gables last year, and he had mostly been a wide receiver and free safety before he got to campus. He’s now up to 251 pounds and has turned into the most productive defensive lineman in the ACC, even after he missed nearly all of his freshman season with an ankle injury. This weekend, Rousseau even hosted four-star Champagnat safety Jalen Harrell for his official visit.
Roberts is one of two blue-chip defensive ends orally committed to the Hurricanes’ Class of 2020 and Miami’s top-ranked defensive line commit from South Florida, according to the 247Sports.com composite rankings. He said he still hears some from Florida State and the Florida Gators, but he has no reason to doubt Stroud’s development prowess.
“I talk to Stroud a lot,” Roberts said. “He tells me if I keep my quickness and I keep adding strength, I’ll be able to play D-end. Obviously, my body’s going to change, but I don’t really think too much about it because I don’t mind what I play. I just want to have a chance to get on the field early, have a chance to compete, have a chance to contribute to the team.”
Although he can’t enroll early, Roberts said he plans to sign his national letter of intent with the Hurricanes during the early signing period in December.
First, he has his sights set on a return to the Class 8A championship. After a rocky middle of the season, the Explorers are back to the region semifinals and will play Miami High on Thursday at Tropical Park. A win and Columbus will be two wins from another crack at its first state title.
“I’ve had some ups and downs,” Roberts said, “but I feel like we’re about to start something real good in the playoffs.”
