2020 Deerfield Beach ATH Xavier Restrepo pulled the trigger for Miami late last night.
The 5-10, 185-pounder is currently a consensus 3-star in the national rankings. According to the 247Sports Composite, Restrepo is the #827 player nationally, #63 ATH in the country, and the #117 player in the Sunshine State. His commitment keeps Miami’s class ranking at #4 overall on both 247Sports and Rivals.
The Player
Restrepo grew up dreaming to stay home and play ball with the Miami Hurricanes, so committing to his childhood favorite team last night was no doubt a massive achievement for him. He first received his offer last January under Mark Richt’s staff, and made multiple UM visits throughout 2018, but contact with Miami had been off and on, and it was uncertain if he’d be a take for this class. Once Manny Diaz brought on TE coach Stephen Field, who began focusing a lot of his attention on Deerfield Beach, Restrepo became a more realistic option for Category20, and the young dynamo was soon given the green light to commit. Restrepo was taken as an athlete who can play both receiver and safety and his commitment breaks up the struggles Miami has had at Deerfield Beach for some time now. He chose Miami over Texas, Georgia, Michigan, and Kentucky among others.
After starting out at Monarch High, Restrepo has spent the past two years bouncing around different schools, playing his junior season at St. Thomas Aquinas and recently transferring to Deerfield Beach for his upcoming senior year. When I first saw Restrepo during his sophomore year, I pegged him as a future safety. He’s got a little Jaquan Johnson in him when looking at his size (5-10) and speed (clocked a 4.58 at the Opening Miami Regional) as a DB, because he also has great intangibles that go beyond measurables, loves to hit, and just has a knack for making plays happen. However, there’s no denying how dominant he’s been playing WR the past year and a half.
He shined as a receiver and playmaker for St. Thomas on the offensive side of the field last season, catching 7 TD's and adding both a rushing and passing score for the Raiders, but he has been a true marvel to watch in the off-season camps and 7-on-7 circuit. He owns these types of events and is extremely active in trying to take as many reps as possible, even cutting in line to maximize his reps. That type of competitive nature makes him really fun to watch, but Restrepo is also a very deliberate route-runner and is often working one step ahead to set up his defender. He separates with ease and has great change of direction, using those skills to take home the Opening Miami WR MVP this year in a very stacked field. He also recorded a 4.16 shuttle time, and a 32.5 inch vertical.
In a year with so much talent at the WR position in South Florida, Restrepo’s name seems to get lost in the mix at times, but he is one of the most reliable pass-catching options in the entire country; he is just always open. When I see Restrepo, I see a kid who loves the game and is a flat-out competitor to the core; look no further than his 7 blocked kicks in the past 2 seasons on special teams. Whether it’s Friday nights or 7-on-7s, every time he steps on the field, Restrepo produces. Restrepo is not the biggest or the fastest guy out there, but he has a love for football that few people have and takes his craft very seriously. He’s a guy with a high floor that any coach would love to have in their program.
The Class
Restrepo’s commitment gives UM 15 total verbals in the 2020 class. As mentioned, he could end up at either wide receiver or safety, but we’ve looked at safety multiple times in the past few months with recent commitments from Daran Branch and Keshawn Washington, so we’ll focus on the board at WR.
Restrepo now joins a pair of 4-star commits in Palm Beach Central’s Bryan Robinson and Miami Southridge’s Marcus Fleming at WR in Category20, giving UM some extremely dangerous talent to work with both on the outside and in the slot. Miami is certainly operating from a position of strength in Category20 at receiver, which is why their recruiting strategy at the spot has been peculiar these past few weeks.
Despite already being involved with multiple top targets and likely only one spot left, the Canes have spent the spring evaluation period sending out a ton of offers to receivers, leaving the actual board pretty unclear. There are quite simply a ton of names that are tied to UM at WR right now. The new offerees to focus on would be Hewitt-Trussville (AL) 4-star and Alabama commit Dazalin Worsham, who has already stated his desire to make an official visit to Miami, and Centennial (CA) 4-star Gary Bryant, who just put Miami in his top 10. Either way, it’s clear new WR coach Taylor Stubblefield is turning over every rock to find the perfect fit to close out his class.
Elsewhere, the recruitment of Trinity Catholic (MO) 4-star Mookie Cooper ramped up in the past month when the talented receiver got some Miami crystal balls pegged his way. Cooper, a former Texas commit, had been vocal that Illinois was his new leader when he decommitted back in March, but a Miami offer soon after seemed to change things for the speedy receiver. It wasn’t long until Cooper turned into a big Miami supporter on social media, even hyping up the Canes towards other recruits.
Another out of state prospect in Memphis Central (TN) 4-star Darin Turner visited the Canes this spring and shortly after decommitted from LSU. Stubblefield has kept in constant contact, however, getting Turner back for an official visit will be key in determining just how realistic an option he is. Dutch Fork (SC) 3-star and Virginia Tech commit Jalin Hyatt has also risen on the board thanks to a big spring in which he clocked a 4.31 40 at the Opening Charlotte Regional. Hyatt aims to use an official in Coral Gables as well.
In-state, Columbus (FL) 4-star Xzavier Henderson continues to list Miami among his favorites, but the Canes are trailing Clemson and Florida. A source close to his recruitment told CIS that Henderson tried to commit to Clemson already but was told he had to wait and is in limbo with the Tigers. As of now, I see UF being the beneficiary if Henderson decides to move on. Mulberry (FL) 4-star ATH Arian Smith has been recruited as both a receiver and a DB, and the Canes are working to get him on campus; most see FSU as having a slight lead right now, though.
Former commits in Vanguard (FL) 4-star Leonard Manuel and Miami Christian (FL) 4-star Marc Britt both visited Miami this spring, but they were both on board pre-Stubblefield and I don’t believe the Canes are going after them hard as of now.
The Team
By 2020, Miami will lose KJ Osborn to graduation, and it’s possible that Jeff Thomas could leave early for the NFL, but WR is one of UM’s deepest position talent-wise and they are well stocked to help offset any losses.
Whether Miami ends up with another WR in 2020 or not, with the type of talent Miami is bringing in at WR, Restrepo will have to be well-prepared both mentally and physically if he wants to crack the rotation as a freshman, as the competition will be fierce for reps at WR. While it’s unclear if Stubblefield will be as rotation-heavy as his predecessor, the philosophy under Manny Diaz seems to indicate that seniority will not matter when it comes to playing time and the best players will play, so Restrepo will have a shot to see the field despite an upperclassman-laden group. Miami really is just stacking blue-chips at receiver and it’s hard to say which recruit will rise to the top, but Restrepo has the potential to be very productive at Miami when it’s all said and done. Restrepo could also just as easily end up making an impact on defense and it will be interesting to see how his Miami career unfolds.
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