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3-star DL Frederic Sainteus signs with Hurricanes, wants to ‘make a name for myself’ at Miami

by: Luke Chaney20 hours agoLChaney_

Miami defensive line signee Frederic Sainteus rose to prominence this past offseason.

An unknown commodity who moved from Haiti to Florida during his freshman year of high school, Sainteus started getting recruited this summer with offers from Florida Atlantic and Florida International. He committed to FAU in June; that’s when offers from Power Four schools began to roll in.

Miami made a strong push for Sainteus in September after watching film from his first few senior-year games at St. John Neumann (Fla.). The 6-foot-5, 255-pound defender pledged to the Hurricanes on Sept. 24, and he remained loyal to Miami for the rest of his recruiting process.

On Wednesday, he made his commitment official by signing with Miami. 

“I want to be coached. Step on that field, hit that weight room and everything and make a name for myself there,” Sainteus said.

Something funny about Sainteus? He started playing along the defensive line by accident.

During a practice at Golden Gate (Fla.), Sainteus, who was initially an offensive lineman, accidentally picked up the wrong colored shirt that was meant for the defense. The coaches let Sainteus remain on the defensive side of the ball after this mishap. He took advantage of the opportunity and has stayed on that end of the field ever since.

Playing defense came more naturally for Sainteus, who spoke at length with CaneSport about his football journey back in October.

“The coaches didn’t know what position they wanted to make me play, so they were trying to make me play [on the offensive] line, so I was almost an o-lineman,” he said. “I was asking myself, ‘Why are these guys coming at me, trying to push me back, instead of me doing the same thing?’” 

Sainteus prides himself on his nonstop work ethic, and this trait was evident when we got the chance to watch him play in November. Here’s what we wrote about his motor after watching his three tackles and two pressures performance against North Miami Beach:

“We were also impressed with his motor. There was one play where Sainteus stopped on a dime after blowing past the opposing offensive lineman and sprinted toward the wide receiver, who caught a screen pass and was turning upfield. He was able to reach the ball-carrier and help bring him down.”

Sainteus’ hand speed is also impressive. His arsenal of pass-rushing moves is quite deep for a prospect that has only played football for less than four years. He needs to add more functional strength once he arrives at Miami in the summer, as he has the tendency to get pushed off-balance.

While he may not play much at Miami right away, he has the physical frame, athletic tools and competitive mindset to contribute to the Hurricanes’ defense by his second or third year in college.

“His ceiling is so high,” St. John Neumann head coach Chris Maragos told CaneSport about Sainteus in September. “And the more time he gets with the coaching staff and the people in the University, he’s only going to develop that much more, so the future is great for him.”

CaneSport’s Take
As we mentioned, Sainteus is a bit of a raw prospect who likely won’t contribute right away. He has a ton of long-term upside, however, which explains why Miami’s coaching staff really prioritized him as a must-get in the fall.

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