Elite Central DL Rueben Bain, the top-ranked recruit in Miami, commits to Hurricanes
The top-ranked player in Miami-Dade County is going to be a Miami Hurricane.
Rueben Bain, a record-setting defensive lineman and potentially a four-time state champion at Miami Central, orally committed to the Hurricanes at the Nat Moore Trophy ceremony Tuesday at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Miami Gardens trophy presentation will air Wednesday on WFOR-TV.
The Hurricanes beat out the Florida State Seminoles, Louisville Tigers, Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers to keep Bain home, even after he spent the weekend in Tallahassee on an official visit.
“It’s not what other schools didn’t do,” Bain said. “It’s just what Miami did do. They put in that extra effort, that extra step in the process.”
The elite defensive lineman can officially sign his national letter of intent Dec. 21 once the three-day early signing period begins. He plans to be in Coral Gables this weekend for an official visit.
Mario Cristobal called Bain on FaceTime after he committed and then Bain posed for a photo with four-star wide receiver Nathaniel Joseph, another finalist for the Moore Trophy, while the coach was still on FaceTime with them.
“I never met a head coach that contacted me that much and it was personal. It wasn’t just off a business phone, it wasn’t just through a group chat, I didn’t have to go through this coach to get to him,” Bain said. “I had his phone number, he had mine and we were just talking to each other with no bumps in the middle.”
Bain is one of the most accomplished players to come out of Florida in recent years. He’s already a three-time state champion and a three-time first-team all-county selection by the Miami Herald, and he was the Herald’s Miami-Dade County Co-Defensive Player of the Year for Classes 5A-Independent last season.
On Friday, he’ll have a chance to win a fourth straight state title when Central faces American Heritage in the Class 2M championship at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, and he’s on track to once again be a first-team all-county selection — and perhaps again Defensive Player of the Year — with 28 sacks, 37 tackles for loss and 52 total tackles in 10 games this season.
Last year, Bain set a school record with 29 1/2 sacks, splitting Dade County Defensive Player of the Year honors with linebacker Wesley Bissainthe. He’s the No. 72 overall recruit in the Class of 2023, according to the 247Sports composite rankings, and the No. 16 prospect in the state.
“We’re used to winning and that’s what we’re going to bring back to Miami,” Bain said. “They need help bad, they need help right now, and I’m willing to come in right now and make a change.”
The 6-foot-2, 250-pound senior was originally planning to make his commitment during the 2M championship this weekend, then briefly considered pushing his announcement back to next month at the Under Armour All-America Game before settling on the middling of this week, wanting to get it out of the way before the title game with his decision already made up in his own mind.
He informed the Hurricanes of his decision Sunday, he said.
“He was in a private jet with coach [Rod] Wright,” Bain said. “He turned bright red and kind of threw his phone across the plane. It was an amazing feeling seeing him get so excited, so hyped, so I really knew I was wanted there.”
With Bain in the fold, Miami’s 2023 recruiting class continues a late surge up the national rankings. He’s the fourth player to commit to the Hurricanes since their season ended last month — all on defense — and the sixth top-100 prospect in their recruiting class overall and he brings Miami’s class up to No. 5 in the country, passing the LSU Tigers and Ohio State Buckeyes.
This story was originally published December 13, 2022 at 9:07 PM.
