4-star C Ben Ahmed requests release from Miami, will reopen recruitment

Ben Ahmed, a four-star center in the 2025 class, has requested to be released from Miami and will reopen his recruitment, a source told On3. This decision comes after ‘Canes head coach Jim Larrañaga stepped down from the program in December.

The 6-foot-10 senior out of Putnam Science (Putnam, CT) committed to the Hurricanes in October and signed with the program in November. He initially chose Miami over offers from programs like Georgia, Cincinnati, Boston College, Xavier, Cal, and others.

Ahmed is the No. 74 overall recruit in the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. He’s also the No. 7 center prospect. The On3 Industry Ranking is a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

More on Larrañaga stepping down

Miami head basketball coach Jim Larranaga, who led the Hurricanes and George Mason to the Final Four, stepped down the day after Christmas, after 53 years of coaching college basketball. Bill Courtney is the interim head coach for the Hurricanes for the remainder of the season.

Larranaga, 75, retired after piling up 744 wins during his college basketball career. In addition to being a Division I head coach at George Mason and Miami, he also was the head coach at Bowling Green from 1986-1997.

Larranaga is the winningest coach in Miami basketball history. He has been with the program since the 2011-12 season. He reached the NCAA Tournament six times during his time at Miami, including making the Elite 8 in 2022 and Final 4 in 2023. However, the Hurricanes had a losing record in 2023-24 and appear on their way to having another losing season in 2024-25.

The Hurricanes are currently 5-17 overall, with their only wins being Fairleigh Dickinson, Binghamton, Coppin State, Presbyterian, and Notre Dame. They are currently in last place in the ACC with a conference record of 1-10.

On3’s Matt Connolly contributed to this report.