4-star DL Aydin Breland announces top 10 schools

Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei four-star defensive lineman Aydin Breland is one of the top uncommitted prospects in the country. He is now focusing on a select group of programs.

Breland announced his top 10 schools on Friday night. They are Oregon, Georgia, Miami, Ohio State, USC, Michigan, Texas A&M, Nebraska, LSU and Tennessee.

A 6-foot-4.5, 320-pound defender, Breland is the No. 35 overall prospect in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He is also the No. 6 defensive lineman in the country and the No. 3 player in California.

“What I look for in a school is NFL-quality development,” Breland told On3 on March 9. “I want to be developed the best so I can have success at the next level. I want to have a genuine connection and family feel with a school and the coaching staff. The head coach and the DC and my d-line coach, I want to have a really good, tight, genuine connection with them. I want to like the area that the college is in.”

Breland breaks down some of his finalists

Breland has visited some of his finalists this spring. They include USC (April 29), Nebraska (April 22) Georgia (April 15), Miami (April 14 and March 4) and Ohio State (March 20).

The four-star was impressed during his first trip to Coral Gables.

“I spent time with coaches Joe Salave’a, Mario Cristobal and Jason Taylor,” Breland said. “They made great impressions. I call them the defensive triple threat of coaching.”

“The only thing I knew about Miami prior was that Coach Joe and Cristobal were there and that it was in Florida,” he added. “But now, I have a whole new perspective and actually can say I like it out there.”

Meanwhile, Ohio State’s track record has caught his attention.

“Just them being the renowned program that they are and the d-linemen they’ve prepared for the NFL and the d-ends,” Breland said about his interest in the Buckeyes. “I like the coaches.”

Nebraska also seemed to make a positive impact on the California native when the Cornhuskers got him on campus. Breland told Husker Online that there “is a good chance” he returns to Lincoln in the future.

“It was an easy ‘9’ to a ‘9.5,’” Breland said on April 23. “Little things make me happy… We were doing the photoshoot around all of the trophies and here was this waterfall with an N and I was like, ‘Yo!’ It’s so cool and it was cool to me.”