Tuesdays with Gorney: Ten biggest pledges from the weekend
Fernando Mendoza sits down with Nicole Auerbach to discuss his decision to transfer to Indiana and play for coach Curt Cignetti, competing alongside his brother and fellow QB, Alberto, and his proud Cuban ancestry.
There were 33 Power Four commitments on Saturday and Sunday as the wildly busy month of June kicked off, with many more trickling in Monday as players returned home from visits.
In today's Tuesdays With Gorney, Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney highlights 10 of the most important pledges over the weekend.
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Only a few months ago at the Rivals Camp Series stop in Los Angeles, Benjamin had Arkansas, Nebraska and Utah as his three front-runners with Oklahoma State also in the mix. Nary a word was mentioned about Minnesota.
But the Golden Gophers do great with players like Benjamin – huge offensive linemen who can use some tweaking and some weight on them to become even better players.
At 6-foot-8 and 314 pounds, the three-star offensive lineman from Lehi (Utah) Skyridge is filled with potential that could be tapped within the Minnesota program.
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A few weeks ago at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy, Carr told Rivals national recruiting analyst John Garcia Jr. that he wanted to take his recruitment to December and that he wasn't in a rush to make a decision.
Over the weekend, he committed to Florida on his opening official visit of the month as the Gators beat out Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Colorado and many others.
It could get interesting if Carr decides to take his other trips but the Gators landed a powerful interior offensive lineman who will help in Gainesville.
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A few months ago, USC had become a contender for Day after it offered the four-star safety from Las Vegas (Nev.) Faith Lutheran. Arizona, Iowa, Texas A&M and many others were involved but Washington emerged as the main contender prior to his visit.
There was some chatter that if things went well in Seattle, he would commit and that's exactly what happened.
Day could be one of the next big defensive backs in a long line that have played for the Huskies.
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The Pennsylvania state rankings are loaded at the top with elite offensive linemen but Duell should not be overlooked as the four-star from West Chester (Pa.) West Chester East committed to Rutgers over Cincinnati, Kentucky, Pittsburgh and others over the weekend.
At 6-foot-6 and 290 pounds, Duell can push people around and he also has great athleticism to get to the second level.
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Arizona State was a major early contender but Cal continued to pursue the Murrieta (Calif.) Murrieta Valley high three-star offensive lineman and his connection to position coach Famika Anae was a big selling point in his weekend commitment to the Golden Bears.
Faamatuaniu stepped up his game in a big way at the recent Rivals Camp Series in Los Angeles and he has position versatility so he can be used all over in Berkeley.
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Fresh off a visit to Auburn that went really well and with Oregon, Arizona and UNLV making a serious push for the versatile high three-star offensive tackle from Las Vegas (Nev.) Clark, Harris committed to Washington during his weekend trip.
The Huskies were always in the forefront of his recruitment but it was expected he might take more visits before deciding. Harris is massive at 6-foot-7 and 320 pounds, but it wouldn't be a shock if he played inside.
His brother, Lawson, plays at Georgia. His father and two uncles played for Georgia. It always felt inevitable that the four-star defensive end from Norcross, Ga., would end up playing for the Bulldogs and his commitment happened over the weekend on yet another trip to Athens.
Luckie was just on campus for the recent Scavenger Hunt and his relationship with position coach Tray Scott was big as well.
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Despite being from Norman (Okla.) North, Oklahoma never offered McMorris as the long-time Minnesota lean picked the Golden Gophers over Oregon State, Tulsa, Kansas State and Iowa State over the weekend.
There are some traits here that we love as McMorris is 6-foot-6 and 270 pounds so he's not completely filled out yet, plus he has really long arms. All that should bode well in the coming years.
His father played at Maryland and his brother went to Duke but neither program ended up offering the high three-star offensive lineman from Leland (N.C.) North Brunswick. That is to Rutgers' gain as his relationship with the coaching staff there played a huge role in his commitment as the Scarlet Knights loaded up over the weekend with six pledges.
A couple weeks ago at the Long Beach Millikan Tournament of Champions, Tavizon was not hiding his favorites: Oregon was the front-runner and the Ducks would be tough to beat and then there was also serious interest in USC.
But the 2027 four-star from San Diego (Calif.) Lincoln was always leaning toward the Ducks and on his weekend visit, he committed.
As an edge rusher or a linebacker, Tavizon brings a ton of versatility to that defense.
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