Decommitments that shaped the 2023 recruiting cycle

A handful of commitments can change an entire recruiting cycle for any program. But the same can be said for the inverse — a few major defections can be the difference between a good class and a great class. Some of the country’s top programs have suffered some of the biggest decommitments in the 2023 recruiting cycle, including Oklahoma, Florida State, Oregon, Texas A&M and Michigan.

In total, 12 of the top 40 recruits in the final On3 Consensus rankings — including eight five-stars — decommitted or flipped at least once during their recruitment.

A select few have altered the course of that program’s recruiting class, while others have been able to withstand the fallout and remain among the country’s elite as we close out the 2023 recruiting class. With the dust settled on this cycle, let’s break down the biggest decommitments we saw.

Coaching change causes Oklahoma decommitment spree

Prior to Lincoln Riley leaving for the open head coach job at USC in late November 2021, Oklahoma held the No. 1 recruiting class in the 2023 cycle. With one signature on his new contract, Riley turned everything upside down. Seventy-two hours after news broke the Trojans had their new coach, the Sooners’ three highest-ranked commits had backed off their pledges. Five-Star Plus+ quarterback Malachi Nelson immediately flipped to USC, while five-star wide receivers Brandon Inniss and Makai Lemon fully reopened their recruitments.

Lemon ultimately pledged to Riley and Co. less than a week later, while Inniss waited more than six months to make another commitment, choosing Ohio State over USC in June. The fourth member of the group, DeAndre Moore Jr., held off on a decommitment until late January. He was expected to team up with Lemon and Nelson at Los Alamitos (Calif.) for their senior seasons, but ultimately transferred to national powerhouse Bellflower St. John Bosco. There, he joined up with Louisville QB commit Pierce Clarkson, who led the Cardinals’ recruiting efforts of Moore. That paid off in May, when the four-star wideout pledged to Louisville, giving Scott Satterfield his first top-100 commitment this cycle. Ultimately, he flipped to the Sooners’ arch rival — Texas — adding an extra layer of sting.

Oklahoma was able to recover by landing another Five-Star Plus+ QB in Jackson Arnold, but the weapons that Nelson had coming with him to Norman make this one hurt.

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5-star QB Dante Moore

Other than Nelson, it’s hard to make a case for a bigger decommitment than that of Dante Moore, the five-star passer out of Detroit (Mich.) King. Landing him over the summer was an enormous recruiting win for Dan Lanning at Oregon, and he helped build a class that was sitting just outside the top-10 heading into December.

But offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham left to take the head coaching job at Arizona State, and things began to unravel. Lanning and new OC Will Stein worked hard to keep Moore in the class, but UCLA head coach Chip Kelly — armed with a major NIL deal — pounced on the opportunity.

5-star EDGE Keon Keeley

Keon Keeley was one of Notre Dame’s first two commitments in the 2023 cycle last summer, and he was very much a cornerstone of Marcus Freeman’s first full recruiting class. Even after his pledge to the Irish, he continued to take unofficial visits, including one to Alabama late in July.

He decommitted in August and reopened his recruitment, with Florida, Alabama and Ohio State becoming the three main threats to land him. That list narrowed to the Buckeyes and Crimson Tide earlier this fall. And last month, he made his decision, committing to Nick Saban and Co., giving the Tide a third five-star commit and some much-needed recruiting juice after a disappointing 2022 season on the field.

5-star RB Rueben Owens

The five-star El Campo (Texas) running back was another early commitment, giving a verbal pledge to Texas back in February 2021. Following a slew of offers and new interest that summer, he reopened his recruitment in June, just four months later.

The Longhorns remained in the mix, and were considered to be the co-favorites along with Texas A&M. But Rueben Owens instead shocked everyone by committing to Louisville in June after an official visit there. He immediately became the highest-ranked high school commitment for the Cardinals in recent memory.

Nearly six months later, Owens drew national attention again by decommitting from the Cardinals after head coach Scott Satterfield left for Cincinnati. Later that night, he announced his commitment to the home-state Aggies, giving them a second five-star commit alongside Five-Star Plus+ defensive lineman David Hicks.

5-star RB Cedric Baxter

The long and winding road of On3’s No. 1 running back Cedric Baxter Jr.‘s recruitment began in July 2020, when he made a commitment to Florida State, which sits about four hours from his home in Edgewater. That lasted a little less than a year, with a decommitment coming in April 2021 after offers from Miami and a handful of other programs.

He continued to take visits to Tallahassee, but the more time went on, the more FSU faded out of the picture. In August, he chose Texas over Miami, Alabama, and a small group of other finalists, giving the Longhorns an elite back in their class. FSU worked to flip him back, but his relationship with Texas running backs coach Tashard Choice was simply too much to overcome.

5-star safety Peyton Bowen

Getting an early commitment from Bowen was a massive momentum boost for Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame back in January 2022. The Fighting Irish are expanding their recruiting footprint into Texas and the Southeast under Freeman, and landing an elite player in the Lone Star State is no small feat.

But as time went on — and other programs kept pushing to flip him — Bowen had second thoughts. He took visits to Oklahoma and Texas A&M, and eventually Oregon. In a signing day shocker, he flipped to the Ducks. But he never sent in his National Letter of Intent. Instead, he flipped a few days later to the Sooners, long considered to be the biggest threats to flip him. His commitment gave OU their third five-star commitment and two of the top three players in the state of Texas. It’s hard to understate how big of a win that was for Brent Venables after a bad first season on the field.

5-star CB Cormani McClain

Of the names on this list, there aren’t many who had a more circuitous route to their final destination than Cormani McClain. After entering dozens of offers, McClain was projected to commit to Florida in October. At the last minute, he changed that decision and committed to Miami, shocking everyone. Despite rumors of other schools still pursuing him, McClain was set to sign with the Hurricanes on December 21. But the morning of his announcement, his mother tweeted the signing wouldn’t be happening. And it never did.

Earlier this month, he flipped his pledge to Deion Sanders and Colorado, marking a second consecutive year of Coach Prime pulling a recruiting rabbit out of the hat. It was not only a major blow for the Hurricanes, but it’s hard to imagine a better start to the new era in Boulder.

5-star LB Anthony Hill

Few players inside the state of Texas were more sought-after than Denton Ryan’s five-star linebacker Anthony Hill. Miami, USC, Oklahoma and Alabama — along with Texas and Texas A&M — were among the schools vying to land him over the summer, but the Aggies pulled it off in late July. His commitment gave Jimbo Fisher a major boost on the trail, and had he stuck around, Texas A&M could have three five-star commits right now.

But with the dismal season in College Station, Hill reopened his recruitment and ultimately committed to the Aggies in-state rivals in Austin, giving Texas their third five-star pledge in the class.

5-star LB Raylen Wilson

Landing Raylen Wilson out of Tallahassee (Fla.) Lincoln over the likes of Florida State, Florida and Georgia was a major kickstart to this class for Michigan. The Wolverines had major momentum after winning the Big Ten, and Wilson wanted onboard. Over time though, Jim Harbaugh and Co. lost ground with him, and Georgia stayed on him almost nonstop. He chose to take visits to both schools this summer, as well as one to Florida, before decommitting and then pledging to Kirby Smart.

Wilson is one of the country’s top ‘backers, ranking as the No. 29 overall prospect in the country.

4-star QB Jaden Rashada

One of the top quarterbacks out of California, Jaden Rashada made headlines with the reported NIL deal he was set to receive upon committing to Miami over the summer. Florida, Texas A&M and a handful of others were in the mix, but Mario Cristobal and the Canes won out.

Fast forward a few months, and Rashada shocked everyone by flipping his commitment to Florida and giving the Gators a top-tier passer in the 2023 class while taking one way from their in-state rival.

Earlier this month, however, Rashada asked out of his National Letter of Intent following an NIL dispute with the Gators, costing them one of their top prospects in this class.

4-star EDGE Colton Vasek

When Austin (Texas) Westlake EDGE Colton Vasek committed to Oklahoma, it was a bit of a shot across the bow at Texas, where his father played in the 1990s. The Longhorns weren’t even his No. 2 school — that was Oregon. But after OU’s early-season struggles and a renewed recruiting push from the local school, Vasek opted to stay close to home and flip to the school on the Forty Acres.

Oklahoma still has a commitment from five-star EDGE Adepoju Adebawore, but teaming him up with Vasek would’ve been a nightmare for opponents.

4-star QB Eli Holstein

The Zachary (La.) quarterback is an LSU legacy through and through, with both of his parents going to school in Baton Rouge. But as the Tigers were pursuing five-star passers Arch Manning and Dante Moore, Texas A&M made its move for Eli Holstein. He committed to the Aggies in June 2021, a week after camping there and making an unofficial visit. He become one of their most vocal recruiters, and appeared to be locked in.

After increased interest from Alabama and an offer from Oregon, he decommitted in March, putting one of the country’s best signal-callers back on the board. From there, the Crimson Tide had the inside track — especially after being unofficially dropped from the Manning sweepstakes. He committed in late May, one of two pledges at the position for Nick Saban in this cycle.

4-star QB Lincoln Kienholz

Playing up in South Dakota at Pierre T.F. Riggs High, Lincoln Kienholz fell under the radar a bit nationally as he committed to Washington and quarterback guru Kalen DeBoer. At the same time, Ohio State missed on a number of its top 2023 targets, including five-star Dante Moore, among others. The Buckeyes ended up flipping four-star Brock Glenn away from Auburn, but he ultimately flipped to Florida State last month.

At the same time, OSU turned up the heat on Kienholz, offered and brought him to Columbus. In December, they completed the flip and will bring in one of the country’s highest-upside passers in this entire class.

4-star DL Gabriel Harris

Another early commit for Florida State, Gabriel Harris pledged to Florida State back in February 2021. He, unlike like Cedric Baxter, didn’t stick for long though. After an offer from Ohio State in June, he decommitted from the Seminoles, and the Buckeyes were considered major favorites to land him. His commitment never materialized, and Georgia made its move over the next six months.

After unofficial visits in March and April of this year, he committed to the ‘Dawgs and is now enrolled early.

4-star S Tony Mitchell

Of the prospects here, Tony Mitchell made by far the earliest first commitment. During the summer heading into his freshman season, the four-star defensive back pulled the trigger an offer from Tennessee’s former coaching staff and committed to the Vols. Less than six months later, he camped at Alabama, and three days later backed off his pledge to the Vols in March 2020.

The Crimson Tide remained the favorites for the next two-plus years, ultimately garnering his commitment in late June over Texas A&M.

4-star CB Elliot Washington

On3’s No. 21 cornerback in the 2023 class was one of Alabama’s first commitments this cycle back at the end of January. Along Tony Mitchell and Jahlil Hurley, Elliot Washington was expected to anchor a loaded secondary group for Nick Saban. Other schools stayed on him, with Michigan State and Penn State making hard pushes for him through the spring and early summer.

After a visit to Happy Valley in late June, he locked in with James Franklin, giving the Nittany Lions an enormous boost.

4-star EDGE Tomarrion Parker

Phenix City (Ala.) Central defensive lineman Tomarrion Parker shocked a lot of people when he committed to Penn State after an official visit in June. The Nittany Lions were the only program to host him for an OV at that point, and other schools closer to home were still in the mix.

The distance from home was a bigger factor than he expected, though. He abruptly decommitted from Penn State in August, and Clemson, Florida and a handful of others quickly became involved. Ultimately, his dream school came around with an offer, and Parker committed to Clemson in late November.

4-star CB Dijon Johnson

Ohio State’s tradition of defensive back production speaks for itself, and Tampa (Fla.) Wharton cornerback Dijon Johnson took notice. He hopped onboard with the Buckeyes in April after an unofficial visit to Columbus, shutting things down for the time being. Florida, along with Miami and a few others kept in touch with him in the following months, pushing him to come closer to home.

Late in July, he opted to decommit ahead of his unofficial visit to Gainesville. In October, after months of speculation, he joined up with the Gators and gave them their seventh top-150 commit this cycle.