Miami Hurricanes add another standout veteran linebacker. UM greats lobby Cantwell
The Miami Hurricanes continued an active post-spring portal cycle on Friday by adding Mohamed Toure, a former Rutgers linebacker who missed two of the past three seasons with separate ACL injuries but was very good in the one season that he played.
Toure picked UM over Penn State, Indiana and North Carolina. He visited all four schools.
Toure had 93 tackles (10 for loss) and five sacks in 2023, playing on a unit coached by new UM defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman. In Rutgers' bowl win against UM that year, he had eight tackles (two for loss) and a sack.
But he tore his ACL in an August 2024 practice, his second torn ACL in three years.
At 6-2 and 236 pounds, he's a natural weak-side or middle linebacker and was one of the most accomplished defenders remaining in the portal.
Toure has 23 tackles for loss, 13.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and two interceptions in 37 games at Rutgers, having played in four seasons and missing two others with the ACL injuries.
UM added North Carolina State linebacker Kamal Bonner a week ago, but Toure is the front-runner to start opposite Wesley Bissainthe.
Adding Toure gives UM a very good and deep linebacker room; Raul Aguirre, Jaylin Alderman, Chase Smith and Bobby Pruitt all had good moments during spring practice.
Toure is UM's eighth portal addition since spring practice ended, joining receivers Keelan Marion (BYU) and Tony Johnson (Cincinnati), Bonner, Tennessee safety Jakobe Thomas, Auburn cornerback/safety Keionte Scott (who spent the past four months with Houston), North Dakota State running back CharMar Brown and ex-Texas kicker Bert Auburn.
In the months before spring practice, UM plundered the portal to add quarterback Carson Beck, ex-LSU receiver CJ Daniels, ex-Tulane tight end Alex Bauman; UAB tight end Jack Nickel; center James Brockermeyer; Louisiana Tech defensive tackle David Blay; cornerbacks Xavier Lucas (Wisconsin) and Ethan O'Connor (Washington State) and Charles Brantley (Michigan State); cornerback Emmanuel Karnley (the Arizona transfer then left UM in April); former Jacksonville State safety Poyser; ex-Charlotte long snapper Adam Booker and erstwhile FAU kicker Carter Davis.
Lobbying of Cantwell
Former Miami Hurricanes star offensive tackles Bryant McKinnie and Vernon Carey this week lobbied offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell, the No. 1 prep prospect in the 2026 class, to pick UM when he selects a school on Tuesday.
Miami, Georgia and Oregon are the top contenders.
'Hey @jcantwell24, choosing the University of Miami was the best decision I've ever made—it fulfilled a lifelong dream,' former Miami offensive tackle and NFL first-round draft pick Bryant McKinnie posted on X. 'I came to The U with big goals, and I left having achieved even more.'
Carey, also on X, said:
'From one No. 1 offensive lineman to another — The U is the move,' Carey Sr. wrote on X. 'Something special is brewing in Coral Gables, and we need you, @Jcantwell2499!'
The 6-7, 300-pound Cantwell, who attends high school in Nixa, Missouri, visited UM in the spring and will visit Georgia on Saturday.
On3.com says UM has told Cantwell it can pay him $2 million as a freshman as part of an NIL deal, though another recruiting web site said that figure is inaccurate and being floated by another school to hurt UM's chances.
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