There may be no high profile prospect in the 2016 recruiting class that was more disappointed by the lack of contact from Miami than Niceville safety Romeo Finley.
Finley started off on the right foot when he landed a Cane offer during spring football his sophomore year. Every time that InsideTheU.com touched base with him between then and now, he never reported speaking with any of the coaches.
There were no signs that Finley's (6-1, 198) situation would change until just a few days ago.
"They brought in this whole new coaching staff and they decided to hit me up," Finley said. "The defensive coordinator (Manny Diaz) and the safeties coach (Ephraim Banda) really like me. They watched film and they were surprised the old staff wasn't high on me. I think they said 'We need this kid back'. I have to check them out one last time to see if my heart is still there."
Finley had been very vocal on numerous occasions about his affinity for Miami and all those times where it wasn't going how he hoped are water under the bridge now.
"That's all in the past and this opened up my eyes a lot," Finley said. "You know me, I've always told you about how I grew up a Cane. I kept up with their games even when they weren't on me as much. They had a couple they didn't play so well but they looked good for the most part. They will be better in the future and after I go down, I'll truly understand what the 'U' is all about."
Finley will commit either on signing day or the day before but regardless, three schools are possible landing spots.
"I'm really thinking hardest about Georgia Tech (1/15), Clemson (1/22), and Miami (1/29)," Finley said. "I like those three the most and I feel like they want me the most. I can only pick one eventually but they all offer the chance to play and get a good education."
In addition, Finley holds BCS offers from Florida, Indiana, Louisville, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, N.C. State, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, and USF.
Out of his finalists, the Yellow Jackets are the only one to get Finley on campus in the past calendar year. He traveled to Atlanta in October when they upset the Seminoles.
"I have a really good relationship with the defensive coordinator, Coach Roof," Finley said. "He knows I could come in and make an immediate impact. I know it's a great school and I'm excited to get back there really soon. It should be a good time and I can experience everything again."
The college process can be a lot to handle for any prospective division one athlete. Finley is like the vast majority of his peers in that he's not handling it alone.
"Well my dad has his input on what he thinks I should do," Finley said. "He cares about where I'll fit best and where is the right place. At the end, he puts all the choices on me though. I'll be at school the next few years so I need to be happy."
After transferring in from Fort Walton Beach, Finley totaled 110 tackles, 3 for loss, 2.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, and 16 pass breakups in his two seasons with the Eagles.
Finley is a four star prospect according to the 247Sports Composite, ranking him 15th in the nation at his position and 45th overall in the state of Florida.
