Miami Hurricanes TE coach Stephen Field is known for his connections to the west coast area after his time at Oregon, and those paid off when Jefferson (OR) head coach Houston Lillard tipped Field to an under the radar star in his program, 2021 DE Nathan Rawlins-Kibonge. After taking a look at the tape, it didn’t take long for Field to decide that Rawlins-Kibonge had what it takes to play at UM.
“Miami’s always kind of been my dream school, and I told my coach that when he asked me what school I’d like to play for,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “He told me he was going to get me a Miami offer, and I didn’t believe him at first, but when they offered me, that was probably one of the happiest days I’ve ever had. I was kind of shocked.”
What has Rawlins-Kibonge so interested in the Canes?
“Just the history there, that’s something big,” Rawlin-Kibonge said. “The tradition, the turnover chain – Miami has a swag that is representative of what black culture is to me.”
Rawlins-Kibonge is a multi-sport athlete at Jefferson High, but only focused on basketball and track for his first two years of high school. However, during his junior year in 2019, Rawlins-Kibonge finally hit the gridiron for the first time and put up an impressive line - 74 tackles, 28 TFL, 5 sacks, and 1 FR in 10 games.
“I’ve always followed football and wanted to play,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “The only problem was my mom, she didn’t let me play. I feel like a progressed throughout the year and I definitely learned it’s a lot more than hitting people - there’s a lot of technique, like getting off that line quick.
“There’s a lot of crossover with football and other sports – like for example when I get into a three-point stance, that’s really a track stance. Your body will never go through more strain in any other sport than playing football – when I first started, my hips hurt like ****, so I learned you have to move safe. You’ve got to have more focus, it’s a mental game. If you’re not right mentally, you’re not going to get it done.”
The progression in his game has been noticed by others in the recruiting industry as well – up until recently, Rawlins-Kibonge was an unknown prospect, but he was named a 4-star recruit and the #155 overall player in the country by 247Sports last month.
“My mindset with anything is 100% all effort, never stop going,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “On the field, I feel like I bring really good energy, I feel like I’m a good leader. I feel like people can follow me and I can lead by example or verbally, I like to talk. Technically, I feel like my knockback extension is good, I feel like I can stop the run pretty well, and I feel like I’m fast enough to chase guys downfield.”
At 6-7 240 pounds, Rawlins-Kibonge has a unique physical profile – while the Canes like Rawlins-Kibonge on defense, there are some schools that prefer him to play tight end on offense, and he says he will play some on that side of the ball in 2020.
“I’m getting recruited for both, but I probably prefer defense, I like D-End,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “Just because I feel like the aggressor, the attacker. I don’t feel like I’m just waiting for someone to come get me.”
In terms of programs that have offered him thus far, Rawlins-Kibonge points to Cal, USC, Arizona State, UCLA, Oklahoma, and Nebraska as some schools that are standing out to him right now; Stanford and Northwestern have also gotten in contact recently.
As for visits, Rawlins-Kibonge had a planned OV to see the Sooners in April, but that was pushed back because of the coronavirus concerns.
“I think June is the starting point when everyone has been saying they are going to try and start getting people back to campuses,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “I’m trying to plan another official visit with Oklahoma, I think we’re trying to do it in June, but it’s not 100% yet. Besides that, I haven’t really been planning any, because I don’t know when all of this is going to be over.
“I think because of the situation, I don’t think I’m going to have a top 10 or anything, I think I’ll just wait and decide until signing day. Mentally, I’ll have one, and the colleges will know where they stand with me and what the plan is.”
The only visit Rawlins-Kibonge has made so far was a local trip in November to see Oregon State play Arizona State in a game the Beavers won, 35-34.
“We got to put on the jersey, talk to the coaches, stand on the field while they warmed up, watched the game, they fed us a lot. It was good,” Rawlins-Kibonge said of the visit.
Despite Oregon State being the one school he’s visited, Rawlins-Kibonge says that was really out of convenience and that he doesn’t expect to stay close to home for school.
“I wouldn’t say location is a big thing for me, I can live anywhere,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “I don’t think home is really the place for me, but never say never.
“The main three things I’m looking for would be development, education, and personal relationships – do the coaches value our relationship?”
“Miami’s always kind of been my dream school, and I told my coach that when he asked me what school I’d like to play for,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “He told me he was going to get me a Miami offer, and I didn’t believe him at first, but when they offered me, that was probably one of the happiest days I’ve ever had. I was kind of shocked.”
What has Rawlins-Kibonge so interested in the Canes?
“Just the history there, that’s something big,” Rawlin-Kibonge said. “The tradition, the turnover chain – Miami has a swag that is representative of what black culture is to me.”
Rawlins-Kibonge is a multi-sport athlete at Jefferson High, but only focused on basketball and track for his first two years of high school. However, during his junior year in 2019, Rawlins-Kibonge finally hit the gridiron for the first time and put up an impressive line - 74 tackles, 28 TFL, 5 sacks, and 1 FR in 10 games.
“I’ve always followed football and wanted to play,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “The only problem was my mom, she didn’t let me play. I feel like a progressed throughout the year and I definitely learned it’s a lot more than hitting people - there’s a lot of technique, like getting off that line quick.
“There’s a lot of crossover with football and other sports – like for example when I get into a three-point stance, that’s really a track stance. Your body will never go through more strain in any other sport than playing football – when I first started, my hips hurt like ****, so I learned you have to move safe. You’ve got to have more focus, it’s a mental game. If you’re not right mentally, you’re not going to get it done.”
The progression in his game has been noticed by others in the recruiting industry as well – up until recently, Rawlins-Kibonge was an unknown prospect, but he was named a 4-star recruit and the #155 overall player in the country by 247Sports last month.
“My mindset with anything is 100% all effort, never stop going,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “On the field, I feel like I bring really good energy, I feel like I’m a good leader. I feel like people can follow me and I can lead by example or verbally, I like to talk. Technically, I feel like my knockback extension is good, I feel like I can stop the run pretty well, and I feel like I’m fast enough to chase guys downfield.”
At 6-7 240 pounds, Rawlins-Kibonge has a unique physical profile – while the Canes like Rawlins-Kibonge on defense, there are some schools that prefer him to play tight end on offense, and he says he will play some on that side of the ball in 2020.
“I’m getting recruited for both, but I probably prefer defense, I like D-End,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “Just because I feel like the aggressor, the attacker. I don’t feel like I’m just waiting for someone to come get me.”
In terms of programs that have offered him thus far, Rawlins-Kibonge points to Cal, USC, Arizona State, UCLA, Oklahoma, and Nebraska as some schools that are standing out to him right now; Stanford and Northwestern have also gotten in contact recently.
As for visits, Rawlins-Kibonge had a planned OV to see the Sooners in April, but that was pushed back because of the coronavirus concerns.
“I think June is the starting point when everyone has been saying they are going to try and start getting people back to campuses,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “I’m trying to plan another official visit with Oklahoma, I think we’re trying to do it in June, but it’s not 100% yet. Besides that, I haven’t really been planning any, because I don’t know when all of this is going to be over.
“I think because of the situation, I don’t think I’m going to have a top 10 or anything, I think I’ll just wait and decide until signing day. Mentally, I’ll have one, and the colleges will know where they stand with me and what the plan is.”
The only visit Rawlins-Kibonge has made so far was a local trip in November to see Oregon State play Arizona State in a game the Beavers won, 35-34.
“We got to put on the jersey, talk to the coaches, stand on the field while they warmed up, watched the game, they fed us a lot. It was good,” Rawlins-Kibonge said of the visit.
Despite Oregon State being the one school he’s visited, Rawlins-Kibonge says that was really out of convenience and that he doesn’t expect to stay close to home for school.
“I wouldn’t say location is a big thing for me, I can live anywhere,” Rawlins-Kibonge said. “I don’t think home is really the place for me, but never say never.
“The main three things I’m looking for would be development, education, and personal relationships – do the coaches value our relationship?”
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