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Miami Hurricanes sign 2026 4-star CB Jaelen Waters, one of class’s earliest believers

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 Wagner8 hours agostephenwagOn3

The highest-ranked cornerback in Miami’s 2026 class has formally signed with the Hurricanes.

Tampa (Fla.) Armwood four-star 2026 cornerback Jaelen Waters signed with Miami Wednesday as one of the Hurricanes’ four cornerbacks in this year’s class. The No. 117 overall prospect and No. 18 cornerback was one of Miami’s longer-tenured commits in this year’s class after committing to Miami in early March, although he’d been trending toward the Hurricanes for several months.

Waters committed to Florida last year and then-Gators secondary coach Will Harris but received a strong recruiting effort from the Hurricanes last fall and early this spring. Waters decommitted from the Gators in February before announcing his commitment to Miami March 7.

Waters maintained a strong relationship with Harris he originally built during his time on Florida’s coaching staff and regularly cited his connection with Miami’s secondary coach as a major reason why he remained so locked in with the Hurricanes. Texas made a bit of a run at Waters during the fall and attempted to get him to campus, but Waters remained solid with the Canes.

Coach: Why Miami 4-star CB commit Jaelen Waters ‘has it all’

“I met him when I was like a sophomore,” Waters told CaneSport of his relationship with Harris. “I was committed to him at Florida. He just takes care of me like he’s a dad. He’s really cool. My dad, my mother, also my grandmothers, my brothers, he’s just a family guy and also a good football coach, so just everything. All in all he’s a good coach.”

Waters visited Miami more than any other program including a whopping 12 visits during the 2025 calendar year and 14 visits total.

“Every time I’m down there it feels like home,” Waters said. “The players welcome me like it’s home. The coaches welcome me like it’s home. I’m not even in a recruiting mindset — it’s just me getting ready for the next level. Me just hanging around all of the boys. The boys really welcome me like I’m an incoming freshman already.”

CaneSport’s Take

Waters is one of the highest-end corners in the state of Florida and a player who remained enthused about ultimately signing with Miami. He’s one of our favorite defensive signees in Miami’s class given his combination of length, size and intelligence and experience playing across Armwood’s defensive backfield –lining up at nickel, free safety and corner at different times throughout the year. But we don’t have any doubt he’ll be a true cornerback at the college level.

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