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Miami Hurricanes score historic signing with addition of No. 1 overall prospect Jackson Cantwell

Stephen Wagner covers recruiting for the University of Miami for On3 Sports and CaneSport. He can be found on Twitter at @stephenwag22 and reached at Stephen.Wagner@On3.com.by: Stephen Wagner19 hours agostephenwagOn3

Miami signed its highest-ranked recruit of the modern recruiting era Wednesday when No. 1 overall prospect and Five-Star Plus+ offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell formally signed with the Hurricanes.

The 6-foot-7.5, 315-pound recruit and No. 1 offensive tackle committed to Miami May 13 in a recruitment that featured some early drama as Miami, Oregon and Georgia clashed over Cantwell, although the last six-and-a-half months have been drama-free. Cantwell permanently shut down his recruitment immediately after committing to Miami and only visited Miami following his commitment.

Cantwell will be an early enrollee and should compete for playing time immediately after arriving on campus. Rivals Director of Scouting and Rankings Charles Power said Cantwell has “eye-popping athleticism and functional strength” and pointed out he began his career as a tight end before moving over to offensive tackle. His parents, Christian and Teri (Steer) Cantwell, were both Olympians. His father won Silver in the shot put in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

There was initially a solid amount of buzz surrounding Georgia ahead of Cantwell’s decision considering he squeezed in an official visit to UGA just days before his scheduled announcement date. But on his flight back from his trip to Athens, he decided he wanted to commit to Miami.

“I know on the way back from UGA is when I kind of wanted to figure that out,” Cantwell told CaneSport after his commitment. “Going into (the UGA visit) I figured I’d either go there or Miami. Those were kind of the two I was down to at the time. I got on the plane coming back from Atlanta and I remember telling myself, ‘Alright, by the end of this plane ride I’m going to know where I’m going.’ I just thought about it the whole plane ride. I was just kind of thinking about it, and by the time I got off I was like, ‘Well, I guess I’m going to Miami, guys.’”

Cantwell raved about his connection with head coach Mario Cristobal and offensive line coach Alex Mirabal and his belief in the two coaches’ ability to develop offensive linemen. He maintained a strong connection with both since publicly announcing his pledge.

“I feel good about (my commitment),” Cantwell told CaneSport in late October. “I feel like I made the right decision. I’m still in contact with the staff pretty much daily. I still watch all of the games. I still invest a lot of time to understanding what they do scheme-wise. It’s just really cool to follow them. I think they do a really good job.”

CaneSport’s Take

Cantwell headlines one of the best offensive line classes in football this year and will undoubtedly face expectations to have a career similar to Francis Mauigoa’s – be a five-star offensive tackle who comes in, starts immediately and leaves after three years to be a first-round draft pick. If there’s one player capable of meeting such lofty expectations in Miami’s 2026 class, it’s Cantwell.

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