Miami flips 4-star EDGE Hayden Lowe away from USC

Los Angeles Oaks Christian four-star EDGE Hayden Lowe has flipped his commitment from USC to Miami. He had been committed to Southern Cal since June 9.

Lowe told On3 that he has been considering making this move for the last two weeks.

“I’ve been really weighing out the pros and cons of me staying home or going away,” Lowe said. “Everybody says if you go away, it’s character development. It will help me grow up faster, become the man I want to become. I feel like I go over to U-Miami, my development. . .  there’s no ceiling for my development to go anywhere.”

Lowe emphasized that this was a tough decision. When it came down to deciding to flip to Miami, both the effort from the Hurricanes coaching staff and their track record with development pushed Miami over the finish line.

“I feel like Miami has given me unwavering love since the start of my recruiting process,” Lowe said. “You know, since the start, USC hasn’t really given me all-in — I haven’t really been their No. 1 guy from the start. I became their No. 1 guy when other recruits decommitted, With U-Miami, I’ve been their No. 1 guy since the start. They love me. You’ve got to go where you’re wanted. I feel like I’m more wanted in Miami than LA.”

Miami defensive ends coach and six-time Pro Bowlers Jason Taylor played a significant role in landing Lowe’s commitment.

“In order to be the best, you have to be coached by the best and someone that has actually went through what you’re going through,” Lowe said about Taylor. “So, I feel like nobody in college football has that power to instill what you want other than Jason Taylor — because he’s gone through it. He’s been against the best of the best. He’s gone through all the struggles, he’s won games, he’s won Super Bowls, holds records. There’s no other coach on the planet that can really give you the information that he can. Only he can, because he went through it, he has personal relationships through it.

“I feel like the program is going on an upward rise because they’re excited about so many young recruits that are coming in — big names that are coming in,” Lowe continued. “Mario Cristobal — he’s done a very, very great job of winning this year. They’re a winning program. . . Mario is going to ensure that there’s going to be more people coming in to uphold that winning mentality they have down there at Miami. He did it at Oregon, now he’s going to go do it with Miami.”

Lowe is the nation’s No. 154 overall prospect in the 2025 cycle according to the On3 Industry Ranking — a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He is the No. 20 edge rusher in the class and the No. 13 recruit from California.