Miami Northwestern stars choose Nebraska Cornhuskers on early signing day
It was national early signing day for high school recruits around the country Wednesday morning, and there were plenty of assorted hats on the table when Miami Northwestern stars Marcus Fleming and Ronald Delancy walked into the school’s media center.
But when it was over, it was the same two hats, Nebraska, that each donned to play for Scott Frost and the Cornhuskers program.
Just four days after helping lead the Bulls to a third consecutive state championship, the two longtime friends confirmed they had always intended to make a joint decision and attend the same school.
“We made our trip out there together when they played Wisconsin [Nov. 16] and we really fell in love with everything from the start,” said Fleming a wide receiver who caught seven passes for 94 yards and a 17-yard touchdown in Saturday’s 34-17 title game win over Orlando Jones. “The one thing we both especially liked was that they told us we would have an opportunity to get out on the field right away.”
Delancy, who was a shutdown cornerback for the Bulls over the past three seasons and only had four interceptions this past season probably because quarterbacks didn’t challenge him that much, had two other hats on the table including the University of Miami.
But he confirmed that the Hurricanes were never seriously in the running or Louisville for that matter ([the other hat] because he and Fleming were always going to be a team when it came to where they were going.
“It wasn’t just about the possibility of getting out on the field right away but also the whole atmosphere of the campus,” Delancy said. “The whole thing was just so cool and the coaches showed us a lot of love. We really felt wanted there more than anywhere else.”
Fleming’s journey was an interesting one because he only spent two of his four years at Northwestern. He came over to be a Bull after playing at Miami High as a freshman but then left for Southridge to play for the Spartans as a junior. He then returned to Northwester for his senior year.
“To be honest, I came back to play with my brother [Delancy],” said Fleming who threw everybody a curve ball when he reached for the hats by initially picking up a Florida State cap. “It always kind of felt more like home here anyway so everything worked out.”
“I wasn’t too happy when he made the decision but I respected it,” said Delancy who also handled punting duties for the Bulls and is being projected at either corner or safety by Nebraska. “After last year I called him and said, ‘come on back and let’s finish this thing up together,’ and I’m glad he did. We wanted to go out together as state champions and that’s exactly what we did.”
“Two great kids who are going to go out there and do great things,” Northwestern head coach Max Edwards said. “I always knew Marcus and Ronald were special kids and was certainly glad the day Marcus showed up in the back of the church last August [the team goes to church every Sunday morning] because they’re so close and belong on the field together.”
This story was originally published December 18, 2019 at 1:50 PM.