Lawrenceville (Ga.) Central Gwinnett High School QB Jarren Williams is Plan A and Plan B for the Miami Hurricanes in this recruiting class, as Quarterback U is in need of a QB.
Williams took his official visit to Miami this weekend, arriving in town Thursday and with a flight back home early this afternoon.
The good news for the Canes?
The visit went great.
But now it’s going to be wait and see - Williams has visits the next two weekends to Ohio State and Auburn and then will announce a decision.
Those are the final three in this - Williams’ father, Anthony, told CaneSport that Jarren has decommitted from Kentucky.
Certainly UM has put itself in a good situation.
“Mark Richt’s offense, I feel I’m a great fit for it,” Williams said. “What he does with his quarterbacks and how he develops them, I think I can be very successful in his system. … Coach Richt, sitting down with him he’s a great guy, great coach, great person, great father.”
He added that “What I liked most about (the school itself), what stood out to me was the campus and how close everything is, how the teachers are very successful in their profession, can relate to you.”
Asked if the Canes now have a leg up entering his final two visits, Williams (who is an early enrollee) said, “I’m visiting Ohio State and Auburn, but Miami - I’m real high on them right now. They’re definitely I would say very high on my list right now, very high.”
Anthony adds that “It was a great visit. The campus, everything was Turnt Up. He really enjoyed it, really enjoyed spending time with coach Richt, the team, all the coaches.”
The other two programs Williams is considering both already have QB commitments. Ohio State has five-star Emory Jones and Auburn has 4-star Joey Gatewood.
So how does that factor in?
“Ohio State has a commit but would take Jarren’s commitment,” Anthony said. “And Auburn, they have Gatewood but they’re looking at him as a tight end and will give him a shot at quarterback. But competition is competition. He doesn’t run away from any competition.”
"Miami - I’m real high on them right now. They’re definitely I would say very high on my list right now, very high."
Richt’s message to the family?
“Jarren met him when he was at Georgia, so we knew he was a great guy,” Anthony said. “And Jarren really connected with him, he spent a lot of time with Jarren, was real gracious with his time. He let Jarren know he was the man, he’s the one quarterback that they want. He made sure Jarren knew that, that was very clear.”
The family spent the morning today at Richt’s home, having breakfast.
“We spent a lot of time there, one-on-one time, just talking, talking about football and about life things,” Anthony said. “We really connected. He saw a different side of Jarren, and Jarren saw a different side of him. They both like each other a lot.”
Would dad give his blessing for Jarren to become a Cane?
“Oh, absolutely,” Anthony said. “Miami checked all the boxes for us.”
Asked the highlight of the visit, Anthony said, “For him it was really spending time with coach Richt. We had an opportunity to spend an hour or so in the quarterback room and that was a highlight for Jarren, just going over the concepts.”
The bottom line here?
“We’re looking at these three programs, then are going to make a decision,” Anthony said. “What I can tell you is Miami is very, very high.”
He reiterates it one more time for good measure.
“Very high,” dad says.
* Williams’ host was Augie DeBiase.