Rivals Camp Series Charlotte: Recruiting Rumor Mill surrounding LBs and DBs
FORT MILL, S.C. – The Rivals Camp Series stop in Charlotte was loaded at the linebacker and defensive back positions and on Sunday there was tons of recruiting news coming from that group as well.
Rivals national recruiting analysts Adam Friedman and John Garcia Jr. have the latest on many big names.
MORE FROM CHARLOTTE: Five programs that should be pleased | Clinton Portis interview | OL/DL Rumor Mill | How Sunday will impact rankings | NFL legends flock to RCS Charlotte | WR/TE Rumor Mill | RB Rumor Mill | QB Rumor Mill | Friedman's Takeaways | Position MVPs | Top plays | Bryce Baker interview | Thomas Davis Jr. interview | Blake Woodby interview | Savion Hiter interview | Malik Washington interview | Aiden Harris interview | Darius Gray interview | Jayvon McFadden interview | Zion Elee interview | Top performers from the Rivals Combine Series
Clarke isn’t a name many people are familiar with just yet but the class of 2026 four-star defensive back has the attention of college coaches from around the country. The Virginia native was at Miami on Saturday for its spring game and really liked how competitive the team was. Tennessee and Virginia Tech are two other programs to watch out for in Clarke’s recruitment. He’s been to Tennessee three times so far and has been to Virginia Tech on multiple occasions, the latest of which was in January.
Florida State, South Carolina and NC State are three other programs that have made an impression on Clarke. He will make the trip to Syracuse this weekend for its spring game. Clarke is also thinking about doing camps at Colorado, USC, Oregon and Texas this summer.
*****
As one of the top linebackers in the 2026 class, Davis has plenty of options to choose from. A recent series of visits yielded some new offers from teams that could be major contenders in his recruitment. Ohio State, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Miami, Virginia, NC State and Clemson are just some of the teams that will be heavily involved in his recruitment going forward.
Georgia, where his dad was a star for the Bulldogs, isn’t really active in his recruitment but the two sides have maintained some contact.
*****
Edwards, the Defensive Back MVP from the camp on Sunday, is one of the more heavily recruited defensive backs in the 2026 class, which makes sense given his lofty ranking. Georgia and Maryland have been two major contenders for him and he’ll visit both schools in the next few weeks.
Before those trips, Edwards will head west for Oregon’s spring game. He has a former teammate in Ify Obidegwu who is suiting up for the Ducks this year after signing with them as part of the 2024 class.
*****
Checking in at RCS Charlotte with South Carolina gloves on, Matthews admits the Gamecocks are high on his early list. Penn State, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia were also mentioned after taking a busy run of spring visits. Florida State is a program the lengthy cover corner would like to get to later in the offseason, though he is in no rush to make a verbal commitment.
Matthews is looking at next offseason, going into his senior season, as the most likely window relative to a college commitment. Clemson, LSU, Georgia and Ohio State are remaining offers Matthews would like to add to his long list.
*****
Portis, the son of former Miami Hurricanes great Clinton Portis, has seen his recruitment explode in the last few weeks. An offer from Ole Miss surprised him and then he visited campus and really liked the facilities and the staff. The recent offer from Miami meant a lot to the younger Portis. He visited the Coral Gables campus earlier this month with his family and it was a memorable experience for them. Getting to see where his dad was a star was a big deal to him.
Portis has a lot of other offers but he has yet to really attack the recruiting process.
*****
Two months or so into his Virginia commitment, Spence feels very comfortable with the coaching staff in place in Charlottesville. The lengthy corner cites strong relationships with multiple assistant coaches, who continue to check in. While Michigan and Virginia Tech were among the contenders prior to Spence’s pledge to the Cavaliers, only the Hokies have stuck with the communication towards the two-way talent.
Spence cites solidity with UVA and he’ll be back on campus for their upcoming spring game. No other trips are being planned at this time.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH VIRGINIA FANS AT CAVSCORNER.COM
*****
Ohio State landed Woodby’s commitment back in October and since then the Buckeyes have built the best defensive back recruiting class in the 2025 cycle. Woodby was back in Columbus on Saturday for the Ohio State spring game and really liked what he saw on the field and what he heard from the coaches. He also liked spending time with fellow Ohio State commits Devin Sanchez and Na’eem Offord.
The Buckeyes aren’t the only program Woodby is in contact with. Oregon and Auburn are trying to get him to rethink his commitment. He was recently at Auburn and liked how much experience their coaching staff has on the defensive side of the ball. Woodby has visited Oregon in the past and he has a former teammate in Ify Obidegwu already on the team to give him an unfiltered look at what the team is really like.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH OHIO STATE FANS AT DOTTINGTHEEYES.COM
