Leonard Taylor, five-star defensive tackle and part of ‘Palmetto Five,’ commits to Miami
The Miami Hurricanes are once again keeping a five-star prospect from leaving South Florida.
For the second time in the past month, a five-star recruit from South Florida has decided to stay home and play for the home team. Leonard Taylor, a five-star defensive tackle from Miami Palmetto, has orally committed to the Hurricanes.
Taylor announced his commitment Thursday in a video broadcast at CBSSports.com, picking Miami over the Florida Gators.
“Being down the street from my mom was a big part,” Taylor said after placing a Hurricanes hat on his head. “I feel like if I go there, I can dominate as a freshman. ... They’re recruiting a lot of players from down south, so why not just play here? Put on for my own city.”
The No. 27 overall prospect in the 247Sports.com composite rankings for the Class of 2021, Taylor immediately becomes one of the top-ranked recruits in program history. The 6-foot-4, 255-pound defensive lineman currently one of the 25 highest ranked recruits in Miami history and only the program’s 28th five-star pledge in the 247Sports database, which goes back to 2000. As a junior last season, Taylor logged 68 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, 11 sacks and two interceptions.
He also makes the Hurricanes 3 for 3 so far in recruiting the vaunted “Palmetto Five” and Taylor is the crown jewel of the quintet.
Miami has long held a commitment from four-star defensive tackle Savion Collins and the Hurricanes landed Under Armour All-American athlete Brashard Smith last month. Miami is also a finalist for five-star cornerback Jason Marshall and four-star safety Corey Collier.
Taylor, whom 247Sports ranks as the No. 4 overall prospect in its own rankings, has been a top target for the Hurricanes since his sophomore season when he was playing at Miami Southridge. The Hurricanes were the first team to offer him a scholarship way back in 2018 and they’ve long been on the short list of his favorite schools, even as they’ve put up disappointing results on the field, although others — most notably Florida — once seemed poised to lure him out of Miami-Dade County.
The Hurricanes — partially because of the COVID-19 pandemic and partially because of a series of coaching changes earlier this year — managed to reemerge as a recruiting juggernaut this summer, though. Since the start of June, they’ve landed seven commitments from blue-chip or All-American recruits across the Miami area. The run peaked last month when James Williams, a five-star athlete from Plantation American Heritage, made a surprise announcement and picked the Hurricanes over the Georgia Bulldogs, who were widely regarded as the favorite in the safety’s recruitment.
Less than three weeks later, Miami has made another five-star addition. Now the Hurricanes have multiple five-star commitments in the same recruiting circle for the first time since the Class of 2012 and a third could be on the horizon. Miami is currently the favorite to land Marshall, according to 247’s Crystal Ball.
“They all love each other and they all care about each other, and they all play really well together,” Panthers coach Mike Manasco said last month after Smith committed. “I think anytime you get one, you’ve got a better shot and now they’ve got two.”
The senior is the 21st overall commitment in the 2021 class after three-star Miami Northwestern outside linebacker Ja’Corey Hammett flipped from the Hurricanes to the West Virginia Mountaineers on Wednesday. Taylor is also the fifth defensive lineman in the class and third defensive tackle, joining four-star defensive end Jabari Ishmael, three-star defensive end Thomas Davis, three-star defensive tackle Allan Haye and Collins, his close friend and teammate at Palmetto.
Nineteen of Miami’s 21 pledges either currently live in South Florida or grew up in the area, and 17 currently live in either Miami-Dade County or Broward County. Of those 17, 12 were first-team all-county selections by the Miami Herald, including Taylor.
With Taylor’s commitment, the Hurricanes move up from No. 11 to No. 8 in the team rankings, and move up from No. 3 to No. 2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
They’ve done so by winning recruiting battles in their own backyard. Of the 20 blue-chip prospects currently playing in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, the Hurricanes have already landed 10, including two of the four five-star recruits. The Clemson Tigers, with two, are the only other team with multiple commitments from blue-chip South Floridians in the 2021 class.
This story was originally published August 6, 2020 at 1:26 PM.
