Defensive lineman Kellan Hall has trimmed his recruitment to 12 schools, and Miami is still very much in the mix.
Hall, the No. 2 overall prospect and the top-ranked defensive lineman in the 2028 Rivals Industry Rankings, announced a final group that features Oklahoma, Ohio State, Michigan, Tennessee, Georgia, Texas A&M, LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Texas, Oregon and Kentucky.
The 6-foot-5, 270-pound five-star posted the news on August 21, 2026.
His sophomore season in 2025 was a big one: 53 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks while helping his high school team finish 15-0 and win the Kentucky state championship.
For any program trying to pull Hall away from home, the job will be difficult. Still, every school on his list has the kind of recruiting muscle that can make a push.
Miami, in particular, has built real momentum on the defensive line under Mario Cristobal, and that area of the roster has become a calling card for the program. The production of Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor gets the headlines, but the depth up front has been just as important in setting the Canes apart.
That front should stay loaded in 2026, too. Ahmad Moten Sr. and Justin Scott have both been projected as first-round picks in the 2027 NFL draft by Bleacher Report, while Damon Wilson, a transfer from Missouri, is another name expected to draw NFL attention depending on how the depth chart unfolds.
There’s still a long way to go before Hall makes a decision, but Miami has kept itself in the hunt.
In Other News...
Miami Offensive Line Still Has Something To Prove This Camp
Ryan Rodriguez came away from Miamis recent scrimmage with the same broad message plenty of veteran linemen deliver in August: there is promise up front, but there is also plenty of teaching left to do. He spoke about freshman blockers Ben Congdon and Jackson Cantwell as eager learners, the kind of newcomers who are already trying to absorb the details that matter when an offensive line starts to take shape.
Rodriguez also underscored why the Hurricanes keep cross-training along the line, since that kind of flexibility helps build chemistry and a better feel for how each spot works. Even with the scrimmage serving as another checkpoint in camp, he made clear the group is still chasing the standard it expects of itself, which leaves Miami with a familiar late-summer storyline: the talent is there, but the proof still has to show up on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Miamis Loaded Offense Creates One Huge Numbers Question For 2026
With Miamis offense looking deeper and more dangerous on paper, the conversation around 2026 naturally turns to how the numbers will actually get spread around. A full 13-game projection cycle for Darian Mensah, Malachi Toney, Cooper Barkate, Joshua Moore, Daylyn Upshaw, Mark Fletcher, Girard Pringle and CharMar Brown paints a picture of a unit with no shortage of options, whether the ball is in the air or on the ground. For a Hurricanes team built to stress defenses in multiple ways, the appeal is obvious, but so is the challenge of figuring out who gets fed first.
The biggest question is not whether Miami can generate production, but how much of it one quarterback and one primary target can realistically absorb when the room is this crowded. Those projected passing yards, receptions, rushing yards and touchdowns are useful as a guide, yet they also underline how much of this remains a guess until the opener starts settling roles. In a season where expectations for the offense are high, the numbers game may end up being just as interesting as the scoreboard. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Just Cleared An Early Hurdle With Elite Safety Recruit
Miami picked up a useful marker in the early stages of the Jaelyn Easterling-Flores sweepstakes when the 2028 four-star safety from Desert Edge released his top six. The Hurricanes made the cut alongside Auburn, Georgia Tech, LSU, Oklahoma and Texas, a sign that Mario Cristobal and his staff remain in the mix for one of the cycles more highly regarded defensive backs even before the process has really begun to settle in.
Easterling-Flores has already logged official visits to Oregon, Florida, Auburn, Texas and Notre Dame, but Miami has not yet hosted him. He said this will be his final list, with no more trimming ahead, so the next step for the Hurricanes will be turning that spot on the list into a real trip to Coral Gables and, eventually, a stronger claim in a recruitment that already has plenty of heavyweight competition. [Read more 🡒]