Mario Cristobal makes major signing-day splash, landing star Dillard DL Nyjalik Kelly

Nyjalik Kelly didn’t want to have to go play on the other side of the country.

Kelly said he would have, though, if it meant having Mario Cristobal as his coach.

So when Cristobal recently left the University of Oregon to come home to coach the Miami Hurricanes, Kelly said his decision as to where he’d play college football was a “no-brainer.”

“I really fell in love with Oregon and coach Cristobal and all of them over there,” Kelly said. “But now that he’s back in my hometown, I had to pick ‘the U.’ It was a no-brainer…no-brainer.”

Cristobal’s recent hire continued to have positive ripple effects on the Hurricanes on Wednesday afternoon as Kelly became the latest major recruit to join Miami’s 2022 recruiting class.

Kelly, versatile for his size at 6-4, 240 pounds, is rated the No. 13 defensive lineman in the nation by 247Sports and the No. 84 prospect overall. He immediately becomes the highest-ranked player in the Hurricanes’ class and their only top-100 recruit.

Kelly donned his UM hat while surrounded by family and friends as part of an early signing period ceremony at Dillard’s school auditorium, and chose the Hurricanes over offers from FSU, Florida, Oregon, LSU, Georgia and Auburn.

Cristobal had been recruiting Kelly prior to being hired by Miami on Dec. 6. The two developed a strong rapport during his recruitment. Kelly took an official visit to UM this past weekend, which helped Cristobal land the commitment. He also visited Miami a handful of times in Manny Diaz’s final weeks as coach before he was fired Dec. 6.

Kelly said he made up his mind as soon as Cristobal left for Miami, but told him for sure he was going to sign at the end of his visit this past Sunday.

“He was happy, and excited, and he kept calling me about it,” Kelly said. “It’s just the job he’s doing to try and get ‘The U’ back together. He was trying to turn Oregon into ‘The U,’ but now he’s here and I want to be a part of getting ‘The U’ back on track.”

Kelly, who is still only 17 years old, totaled 25 sacks during the past two seasons as an every-down lineman and projects as a potential NFL draft pick with continued development of his skill set at the college level.

Kelly is an Adidas All-American Bowl selection, who led Dillard to the Class 7A regional semifinals this past season and totaled 58 tackles including 20 for loss and 12 sacks.

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Dillard also had wide receiver Devaughn Mortimer choose Louisville, which was a surprise after he had long been committed to FSU.

Mortimer said he fit in better at Louisville and the offensive scheme which the Cardinals implement. Although he said the recent departure of Seminoles’ offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham didn’t affect his decision, Mortimer acknowledged that the certainty of what kind of offense Louisville will run played a role in him deciding to switch.

“They showed me film and how they would use me and I felt like that was a better fit for me,” Mortimer said. “Louisville is a great place and had a great atmosphere and it felt like home.”

Also for the Panthers, cornerback D’mon Brinson signed with UConn, and middle linebacker Christian Murphy signed with Western Carolina. Dillard expects to have more football players sign in February.

This story was originally published December 15, 2021 at 2:51 PM.