UNC named a \
The North Carolina Tar Heels are off to a strong start in their 2026 football recruiting class, already securing 15 commitment.
UNC's next class is anchored by 4-star defensive lineman commit Trashawn Ruffin, who plays his high school ball at North Duplin in Mount Olive, NC. North Carolina finally landed its coveted quarterback on Wednesday, May 21, securing a commitment from highly-touted Grayson High School (Loganville, Ga.) prospect Travis Burgess.
With Bill Belichick now leading the charge in Chapel Hill, more high-profile recruits are giving the Tar Heels serious consideration.
The latest high-profile recruit who could be heading to UNC is interior offensive lineman Darius Gray, with national recruiting analyst Tom Loy naming North Carolina the "Team to Watch."
Gray is a 5-star recruit, who plays his high school football at St. Christopher's School, in Richmond, Va. Gray is ranked 28th overall in the 2026 recruiting class, second nationally amongst interior offensive linemen and second in the state of Virginia.
"A source reached out to me today (Tuesday, May 20) and said that North Carolina is the team to watch when it comes to Darius Gray," Loy said. "I was leaning towards putting in a prediction for LSU. I've heard a lot of buzz about the Tigers, but keep an eye on North Carolina. Look for him to set an official visit soon. Things are trending in a positive way for Darius Gray and North Carolina."
See the list of schools that 247Sports' Grant Hughes mentions in his above tweet? Clemson, Tennessee, Auburn, Ohio State, LSU and Penn State are all past national champions, while South Carolina is amongst the SEC favorites entering 2025.
As Hughes also mentions in his tweet, it's amazing how much of an effect Belichick has on recruits. Who wouldn't want to come and play for an 8-time Super Bowl champion?
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
10 minutes ago
- USA Today
Jeff Lebby believes Brent Venables has what it takes to turn Oklahoma round
The Oklahoma Sooners are banking on a bounce-back season from their head coach and the program in 2025. On the whole, 2024 was more of an aberration than anything. It's hard to truly take anything away from the offensive side of the ball due to all of the injuries. Venables led the Sooners on an offseason of sweeping changes to the offensive side of the ball to help resurrect an Oklahoma offense that finished No. 97 in the nation in scoring at 24 points per game. Despite the offensive inefficiencies, the Sooners were close in a few games, leading Ole Miss at halftime on the road and holding a touchdown lead against Missouri. If they were even a little bit more consistent offensively, there's a possibility we're talking about an 8-4 regular season instead of 6-6. With all eyes on Brent Venables ahead of a pivotal 2025 season, former offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, now head coach at Mississippi State, took to the SEC media days stage on Wednesday morning and offered a vote of confidence in his former head coach. Why does he believe the Sooners can turn things around in 2025? It comes back to Venables. "Toughness. Consistency. Conviction," Lebby said. "He is going to be very, very true to his process. He is the same man every single day, not letting results dictate who's going to show up in the building every day." That consistency is what has helped Oklahoma build a borderline elite defense during his time as the Sooners' head coach. Now he just needs the offense to return to the production it had in 2022 and 2023, where they averaged 30 and 41.7 points per game. If Ben Arbuckle is everything everyone hopes he is, the Sooners offense will be back to playing good ball and helping this team win. Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.
USA Today
34 minutes ago
- USA Today
Clemson football: All-time rushing leaders in Tigers history entering 2025 season
The Clemson Tigers have had an abundance of elite running backs throughout the course of their rich football history. Some of those have gone on to star in the NFL and hold a place in the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame. There are household names like national champion Travis Etienne and Clemson Hall of Famer C.J. Spiller, now the Tigers' running backs coach under Dabo Swinney. Heading into 2025, could Clemson have its next great running back already on the roster? Four-star freshman tailback Gideon Davidson from Liberty Christian Academy in Lynchburg, Virginia, drew high praise from Swinney and others in spring camp. National outlets like CBS Sports have named Davidson as the team's biggest X-factor entering the season. With only six Saturdays remaining until the Tigers open the 2025 college football season against LSU at Memorial Stadium in a nationally televised game (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC), Clemson Wire is taking a look at the top 10 rushing leaders in Clemson history. 10. Kenny Flowers 9. Will Shipley 8. Phil Mafah 7. Travis Zachery 6. Wayne Gallman 5. Andre Ellington 4. C.J. Spiller 3. Raymond Priester 2. James Davis 1. Travis Etienne Contact us @Clemson_Wire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Clemson Tigers news and notes, plus opinions.
USA Today
40 minutes ago
- USA Today
Is Caitlin Clark playing tonight? Indiana Fever update injury status vs New York Liberty
Status Report for tonight's game against New York:Caitlin Clark – Questionable (right groin) After guard Caitlin Clark suffered her third injury of the season during the Fever's Tuesday night win over the Connecticut Sun, Indiana (12-10) provided a game day injury update regarding the availability and status of the former Hawkeye heading into Wednesday night's clash against the New York Liberty (14-6) from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. According to the team's injury update, the Fever have designated Clark as "questionable" for Wednesday's game against the Liberty, with the area of concern listed as "right groin." "No update. Just felt a little something in her groin, so we'll get it evaluated and see what happens from there," Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White said of Clark's injury status immediately following the win over Connecticut. White later elaborated upon the initial prognosis. 'We just take it one step at a time. She's being evaluated. We'll see where we are with that. Certainly, we'll probably have another evaluation and conversation (Wednesday) and see where we are. This group has played without her. We have a tough opponent in New York. We have to get locked in and ready to compete," White said. Clark's injury occurred with 39 seconds remaining in the game when she delivered a pass to Kelsey Mitchell for an easy layup, but came up in pain and went straight to the bench while reaching for her right groin. While Clark is scheduled to be heavily involved in the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game and 3-Point Contest at Gainbridge Fieldhouse from July 17 to July 19, the Fever may opt to rest the franchise cornerstone against the Liberty to prevent any further injury. Wednesday's matchup against New York will begin at 6:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network. Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews.
