2026 4-star OT Ben Congdon commits to Miami

[OrangeBowlMagic]

There was about an 8 or 9 second window a couple years ago where I thought about OL recruiting/performance under Mario and Mirabal. Wish I could have those back.

 

[Angry Ibis]

Welcome to the U!

 

[lindend]

 

[S.CarolinaCane]

2026 4-star OT Ben Congdon announced his commitment to the University of Miami on X Monday Night.



“All about the U! Canes family let’s go to work,” said Congdon in his announcement post.

The 6-foot-7 Ohio product took an unofficial visit to Coral Gables earlier in the day and spoke highly of the program as a whole.

"I've really connected with Coach Mirabal and Coach Cristobal both over the last few months with me visiting them and them visiting me," Congdon said. "I really love the OL base team and coaches such as Cristobal and how well Coach Mirabal develops people like me."



Congdon becomes the fourth commit for Miami in the 2026 class as the cycle continues to heat up. The Hurricanes beat competition from over 30 schools, specifically Penn State who he had an official visit set with.

Cristobal & co. continue to demonstrate their prowess with recruiting offensive lineman, and they hope to continue through the 2026 class with Congdon committed and interest in 5-stars Jackson Cantwell and Keenyi Pepe.

I assume thats his brother on the opposite side of the line, and he's a monster too.

Was he recruited?

 

[TheOriginalCane]

That's AMBASSADOR Benjamin Congdon to you...

 

[Sebastian Font]

I assume thats his brother on the opposite side of the line, and he's a monster too.

Was he recruited?

Recruited to other schools, I believe he's around 6'10 which gives you an idea that Ben has room to grow even more

 

[lfoliva9988]

kid will be a high 4* by the end of the cycle!! Awesome pickup out of the Midwest.

Always look at the offers for OL out of the Midwest. If Penn St. ND, Wisconsin, Minnesota, etc. are offering, it's a great pickup!

 

[lfoliva9988]

I like the upside here. If he is the floor of the OL class, we are in good shape. He is miles ahead of the OT’s we signed last cycle, IMO.

if he ends up being our "lowest" ranked OL, we're signing the #1 OL class in the country. I think he's going to shoot up the rankings with his Senior season.

 

[Unsider]

Love the way he swats opponents like mosquitos…

 

[TheOriginalCane]

Recruited to other schools, I believe he's around 6'10 which gives you an idea that Ben has room to grow even more

The TALLEST report I've seen is 6'8". But maybe with the afro?

 

[lindend]

That's AMBASSADOR Benjamin Congdon to you...

There may be a battle w/Coleman for who will be the lead ambassador for the class.

These are the type of recruiting problems you want to have.

 

[Sebastian Font]

The TALLEST report I've seen is 6'8". But maybe with the afro?

Don't know how true this is but I saw it yesterday while writing the article

 

[JHallCanes]

Not a mope post or complaining really just a bit of a macro look

I know OL recruiting and evals is unimpeachable to the board but right now here’s what we got since 2023

Francis: duh. Elite level prospect
Samson: remains to be seen this year is big
Kinsler: gotta step up this year
Tripp: gone
Tinilau: gone

Bell: solid so far
Plazz: ?
Minaya: ?
Nino: looks like we may have something there (compared to ranking)

McCoy and Cooper were both really good gets in 2022 (compared to ranking)

The 2023 class is teetering on a bust other than Francis. 2024 is projects. 2025 class is SJ and 3 stars

We need an elite haul in 2026 obviously but they likely won’t be starters right away and it’s concerning since I think we all envisioned Samson, Francis, Kinsler, Tripp etc to be carrying this line in 2026

We will likely always be a good destination for portal guys of course but I’d say 2026 is a pivotal year for a lot of these guys since we will be losing 3 starters after the season

 

[TheOriginalCane]

Don't know how true this is but I saw it yesterday while writing the article

OK, fair enough.

That means he will be a 7-footer with the afro...

 

[Damiencane86]

Not a mope post or complaining really just a bit of a macro look

I know OL recruiting and evals is unimpeachable to the board but right now here’s what we got since 2023

Francis: duh. Elite level prospect
Samson: remains to be seen this year is big
Kinsler: gotta step up this year
Tripp: gone
Tinilau: gone

Bell: solid so far
Plazz: ?
Minaya: ?
Nino: looks like we may have something there (compared to ranking)

McCoy and Cooper were both really good gets in 2022 (compared to ranking)

The 2023 class is teetering on a bust other than Francis. 2024 is projects. 2025 class is SJ and 3 stars

We need an elite haul in 2026 obviously but they likely won’t be starters right away and it’s concerning since I think we all envisioned Samson, Francis, Kinsler, Tripp etc to be carrying this line in 2026

We will likely always be a good destination for portal guys of course but I’d say 2026 is a pivotal year for a lot of these guys since we will be losing 3 starters after the season

There's been some solid reports on Kinsler but duty on field so limited and tough to evaluate. Samson definitely needs to make a leap. Lots of the developmental pieces haven't panned out but the gems of the transition class: Anez + McCoy have proved pivotal so far. SJ & Buchanan look legit for 2025 but we definitely need to hit a couple home runs in 2026. MC's OL results have been a real interesting mixed bag so far.

 

[Jassid82]

Not a mope post or complaining really just a bit of a macro look

I know OL recruiting and evals is unimpeachable to the board but right now here’s what we got since 2023

Francis: duh. Elite level prospect
Samson: remains to be seen this year is big
Kinsler: gotta step up this year
Tripp: gone
Tinilau: gone

Bell: solid so far
Plazz: ?
Minaya: ?
Nino: looks like we may have something there (compared to ranking)

McCoy and Cooper were both really good gets in 2022 (compared to ranking)

The 2023 class is teetering on a bust other than Francis. 2024 is projects. 2025 class is SJ and 3 stars

We need an elite haul in 2026 obviously but they likely won’t be starters right away and it’s concerning since I think we all envisioned Samson, Francis, Kinsler, Tripp etc to be carrying this line in 2026

We will likely always be a good destination for portal guys of course but I’d say 2026 is a pivotal year for a lot of these guys since we will be losing 3 starters after the season

I think the lack of development (so far) of the guys in the classes behind them are the reasons why guys like Samson and Kinsler have not transferred out yet. Pretty much guaranteed starters in 2026 with the way the room is shaping up. However, we are screwed if either of them hit the portal after the Spring.

 

[JHallCanes]

There's been some solid reports on Kinsler but duty on field so limited and tough to evaluate. Samson definitely needs to make a leap. Lots of the developmental pieces haven't panned out but the gems of the transition class: Anez + McCoy have proved pivotal so far. SJ & Buchanan look legit for 2025 but we definitely need to hit a couple home runs in 2026. MC's OL results have been a real interesting mixed bag so far.

Agreed and OL spots need a few years most of the time. We get spoiled by guys like Francis or even Cooper that were contributing right away

The staff is big on McCoy so there’s a slim chance we could actually lose 4 starters (or 5 with Bell). Would be unfortunate to have to hit the portal hard for OL starters but hopefully some guys step up

 

[S.CarolinaCane]

Recruited to other schools, I believe he's around 6'10 which gives you an idea that Ben has room to grow even more

I saw he's going to Campbell, one to keep an eye on in the portal, maybe.

 

[MedleyCane]

Grab the under-the-radar/developmental prospects early as the recruiting wars are not that extreme for those guys yet. Then, if they continue to show promise in their senior years and you have a hit, most often you can hold off the late offers/pitches and you might have a future gem. Otherwise you can stop recruiting them and they’ll eventually de-commit. Meanwhile, slowly chip away at the more premier prospects. Hopefully Congdon doesn’t end up like Lamar Williams and Takaylen Muex.

We’ve already got Juan Minaya, Jaden Wilkerson, Demetrius Campbell, Nino Francavilla, etc. on the roster in terms of these under-the-radar types. Some of these guys need to hit, or at least contribute anything at all. I suppose it’s the nature of these low-ranked prospects that they will most likely do nothing and portal out, but after a few classes the OL room could be shaky. Hopefully 2026 OL group more resembles the 2023 class.

Isn't it a little early to pass judgement on Minaya, Wilkerson, Campbell and Nino?
Most OLmen coming out of HS are projects.
There aren't too many Orlando Paces walking around college campuses.
I say this from having watched several HS OLmen play in person who weren't impressive but nonetheless made it to the NFL like William Roberts, Bruce Armstrong, and Marco Rivera (gf had a cousin in Long Island who played against him).
As for another comment from another poster, the fact OSU hasn't recruited him yet means nothing. It's early still and lots of quality OLmen in college from PA and Ohio who played outside their state, much like quality skill players from Florida playing at non-Florida schools.

 

[BigDikDaddyFromCincinnati]

Agreed and OL spots need a few years most of the time. We get spoiled by guys like Francis or even Cooper that were contributing right away

The staff is big on McCoy so there’s a slim chance we could actually lose 4 starters (or 5 with Bell). Would be unfortunate to have to hit the portal hard for OL starters but hopefully some guys step up

It's still really early to make any sort of declaratory statement about the 2023 class. You've already alluded to that a couple times, so I know you know. Francis is such an outlier that we all (myself included) need a reminder every now and then that most OL take 2-3 years to develop to the point they are seing significant playing time. Back in the olden days, OL would redshirt, then ride pine for 2 years after before sniffing much PT.
If you already know this, sorry. I'm procrastinating some work things right now....