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2020 South Dade (FL) S Keshawn Washington committed to the Canes on Friday night after visiting campus with his teammates at Paradise Camp.
The 6-3, 170-pounder is currently unranked in the national rankings. His commitment keeps Miami’s 2020 class ranking at #1 overall on 247Sports and Rivals.
The Player
What stands out immediately on Washington’s tape is his ball skills. The South Dade star is able to track the ball in the air like a hawk, high point it, and come down with it almost like a receiver. He’d make a great center fielder in the middle of a defense and Manny Diaz loves to use those types in single-high coverages. He demonstrates some great range back there at safety and is able to cover a lot of ground quickly. Washington is the type of player that can be moved all over the field and his versatility allows for a lot of flexibility in the amount of looks you can throw at an offense. Despite his slight frame, Washington isn’t afraid to come up into the box and make a hit either.
At Paradise Camp, I got a look at Washington and I honestly was expecting him to be a little bigger weight-wise considering many project him to linebacker. He is rail thin right now, but obviously has plenty of time to put on the necessary weight. Some might compare him to Diamante Howard and I could see that based on their body types; however, Washington is much, much quicker. Another attribute that comes across in Washington’s game is his instincts and how he seems to recognize a play and react quickly based on what he’s seeing. I really liked how he knew exactly where to be to make a play and was already in motion to break things up a split second before the route was completely clear or the ball was even in the air. That reminds me a lot of a current Cane safety in Jaquan Johnson.
The Class
Washington’s commitment brought the total class numbers to 10 (at the time) and he was the second safety commit in Category20, joining teammate Jaiden Francois who committed hours earlier. It’s unclear where Miami will go at safety in 2020 after this rapid development, but a lot depends on if Francois and Washington stick at this position. Francois played mostly safety and nickel at South Dade last season, but played some outside corner at Paradise and looked like a natural at the position, while many have already projected Washington to outgrow DB and develop into a striker or a traditional linebacker. Since we just profiled the 2020 safeties the other day, we’ll project Washington grows into a striker/linebacker and take a look at how that position is shaping up in Category20.
A pair of St. Thomas Aquinas 4-stars make up the top of UM’s board at LB, with Devon Betty holding his offer since January and Derek Wingo getting the nod in June, and the pair have a lot in common. Both are linebackers converted from another position, Betty from DE and Wingo from QB, but you can see the athletic traits that portend future stars at the position. Both already have offers from all over the country. Both grew up UM fans, and Miami is already in a very good spot with Betty. Wingo is a bit of a different story, as Ohio State has been on him hard for a while and Miami is playing catch-up to the Buckeyes. Miami is going to push for him though, and it seems they’re the only program with a chance to pull him from OSU at this time.
Another in-state target has been Largo (FL) 4-star ATH Jayion McCluster, who is being looked at as a striker in Miami’s defense. McCluster played mostly safety last season for Largo, but will move into the box and play linebacker for his junior season. We’ve gotten multiple reports that UM is in a good place to eventually land McCluster’s commitment if they keep pushing.
The Canes are in early on three out of state ‘backers as well, the biggest name of which is Justin Flowe, a 5-star from Upland (CA). Every team in the country has offered the 6’2, 225 pounder already, but Flowe was actually talking about coming to Paradise Camp over the weekend before bowing out and not visiting anywhere. Unless he ends up hitting campus, he’ll be another California longshot that will eventually just end up at USC, but UM will shoot their shot on him. The two other out-of-staters are Carrollton (GA) 4-star Kevin Swint and Kentwood (LA) 3-star Bryce Cooper. Not much is known about their Miami recruitments just yet, though, and we’ll have to see how things develop and progress.
A LB that is hovering around the radar and could get an offer in the near future is American Heritage (FL) 3-star Andy Garcia, another local kid that loves The U. Garcia has popped up at all of Miami’s underclassmen friendly events this off-season, including Paradise, but wasn’t able to earn an offer based of his performance (as of yet) this weekend. The staff will continue to evaluate him, but Garcia is a kid I could see committing on the spot if Miami did pull the trigger.
The Team
By the time Washington hits campus in 2020, Miami will (at this time) have eight total linebackers already on the roster, with three presumably working at striker. Derrick Smith will be a senior and the likely starter, with guys like senior De’Andre Wilder and sophomore Avery Huff presumably backing him up. That seems like a solid group, especially if Huff develops as expected. With Smith going into his third year of starting at the position, it’s safe to say that Washington will take an apprentice role as a freshman at Miami to learn and develop his body. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Washington used in nickel/dime situations even, similar to how Smith was utilized in his rookie campaign. After Smith leaves, there’s a starting spot open in 2021 for Washington or Huff to take over. With his ability to play multiple positions, there is a role for a talent like Washington in this defense somewhere and he’s likely to be an impact player by the time he’s an upperclassman.
The 6-3, 170-pounder is currently unranked in the national rankings. His commitment keeps Miami’s 2020 class ranking at #1 overall on 247Sports and Rivals.
The Player
What stands out immediately on Washington’s tape is his ball skills. The South Dade star is able to track the ball in the air like a hawk, high point it, and come down with it almost like a receiver. He’d make a great center fielder in the middle of a defense and Manny Diaz loves to use those types in single-high coverages. He demonstrates some great range back there at safety and is able to cover a lot of ground quickly. Washington is the type of player that can be moved all over the field and his versatility allows for a lot of flexibility in the amount of looks you can throw at an offense. Despite his slight frame, Washington isn’t afraid to come up into the box and make a hit either.
At Paradise Camp, I got a look at Washington and I honestly was expecting him to be a little bigger weight-wise considering many project him to linebacker. He is rail thin right now, but obviously has plenty of time to put on the necessary weight. Some might compare him to Diamante Howard and I could see that based on their body types; however, Washington is much, much quicker. Another attribute that comes across in Washington’s game is his instincts and how he seems to recognize a play and react quickly based on what he’s seeing. I really liked how he knew exactly where to be to make a play and was already in motion to break things up a split second before the route was completely clear or the ball was even in the air. That reminds me a lot of a current Cane safety in Jaquan Johnson.
The Class
Washington’s commitment brought the total class numbers to 10 (at the time) and he was the second safety commit in Category20, joining teammate Jaiden Francois who committed hours earlier. It’s unclear where Miami will go at safety in 2020 after this rapid development, but a lot depends on if Francois and Washington stick at this position. Francois played mostly safety and nickel at South Dade last season, but played some outside corner at Paradise and looked like a natural at the position, while many have already projected Washington to outgrow DB and develop into a striker or a traditional linebacker. Since we just profiled the 2020 safeties the other day, we’ll project Washington grows into a striker/linebacker and take a look at how that position is shaping up in Category20.
A pair of St. Thomas Aquinas 4-stars make up the top of UM’s board at LB, with Devon Betty holding his offer since January and Derek Wingo getting the nod in June, and the pair have a lot in common. Both are linebackers converted from another position, Betty from DE and Wingo from QB, but you can see the athletic traits that portend future stars at the position. Both already have offers from all over the country. Both grew up UM fans, and Miami is already in a very good spot with Betty. Wingo is a bit of a different story, as Ohio State has been on him hard for a while and Miami is playing catch-up to the Buckeyes. Miami is going to push for him though, and it seems they’re the only program with a chance to pull him from OSU at this time.
Another in-state target has been Largo (FL) 4-star ATH Jayion McCluster, who is being looked at as a striker in Miami’s defense. McCluster played mostly safety last season for Largo, but will move into the box and play linebacker for his junior season. We’ve gotten multiple reports that UM is in a good place to eventually land McCluster’s commitment if they keep pushing.
The Canes are in early on three out of state ‘backers as well, the biggest name of which is Justin Flowe, a 5-star from Upland (CA). Every team in the country has offered the 6’2, 225 pounder already, but Flowe was actually talking about coming to Paradise Camp over the weekend before bowing out and not visiting anywhere. Unless he ends up hitting campus, he’ll be another California longshot that will eventually just end up at USC, but UM will shoot their shot on him. The two other out-of-staters are Carrollton (GA) 4-star Kevin Swint and Kentwood (LA) 3-star Bryce Cooper. Not much is known about their Miami recruitments just yet, though, and we’ll have to see how things develop and progress.
A LB that is hovering around the radar and could get an offer in the near future is American Heritage (FL) 3-star Andy Garcia, another local kid that loves The U. Garcia has popped up at all of Miami’s underclassmen friendly events this off-season, including Paradise, but wasn’t able to earn an offer based of his performance (as of yet) this weekend. The staff will continue to evaluate him, but Garcia is a kid I could see committing on the spot if Miami did pull the trigger.
The Team
By the time Washington hits campus in 2020, Miami will (at this time) have eight total linebackers already on the roster, with three presumably working at striker. Derrick Smith will be a senior and the likely starter, with guys like senior De’Andre Wilder and sophomore Avery Huff presumably backing him up. That seems like a solid group, especially if Huff develops as expected. With Smith going into his third year of starting at the position, it’s safe to say that Washington will take an apprentice role as a freshman at Miami to learn and develop his body. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Washington used in nickel/dime situations even, similar to how Smith was utilized in his rookie campaign. After Smith leaves, there’s a starting spot open in 2021 for Washington or Huff to take over. With his ability to play multiple positions, there is a role for a talent like Washington in this defense somewhere and he’s likely to be an impact player by the time he’s an upperclassman.
