Mario Cristobal has made a point to go after some big fish in the recruiting world throughout his coaching career, especially since landing with the Miami Hurricanes back in 2021.
For the most part, he has been successful, landing 5-stars like Francis Mauigoa, Samson Okunlola, Justin Scott, and Hayden Lowe over the past few recruiting cycles. This year, Cristobal is going after arguably the biggest fish of them all, though, in 5-star offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell.Rated as the No. 1 overall player in the 2026 class, Cantwell — a 6-foot-7, 300-pound edge-setter — is down to four schools in his recruitment: Miami, the Oregon Ducks, Ohio State Buckeyes, and Georgia Bulldogs.
The Hurricanes have long been considered one of the favorites to land him, but some new developments came to light on Monday that might not bode well for Cristobal and Miami.According to On3’s Hayes Fawcett, Cantwell will be moving up his commitment date to April 30, a big move that cancels a handful of official visits he was planning to take this summer, including to Coral Gables. To make matters worse for Miami, Cantwell announced that he will be taking one OV before his commitment at the end of the month, heading out to Eugene to watch the Ducks’ spring game on April 26 and see Dan Lanning and Oregon one more time.For a prized prospect to cancel an official visit, move up his commitment date, and schedule a visit with arguably the top contender in his recruitment just days before his announcement is a tough break for the other teams in contention.
None of this means for sure that Cantwell is going to be a Duck in the future, but it certainly feels as if Lanning and Oregon have the momentum, and could seal the deal with a successful visit during the spring game in a couple of weeks.
It’s been a tough battle to land Cantwell over the last several months, with teams fighting tooth and nail to try and get the elite prospect to commit to their school. Now we get to see what Mario Cristobal can do in closing time
