Jackson Cantwell made his long-awaited college decision on Tuesday, with the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2026 class announcing his commitment to Miami (Fla.).
But as he celebrated his public allegiance to Mario Cristobal and the Hurricanes, the 5-star offensive tackle also sideswiped one of college football’s top recruiting reporters.
Speaking with the Georgia fan website DawgNation after his commitment, Cantwell was asked about the perception that NIL money was the deciding factor in his choice. And in dismissing such storyline, the Nixa, Missouri, native singled out On3’s Pete Nakos for his reporting on his recruitment.
“I think my response to it is it’s not the same narrative people like Pete Nakos are pushing right now,” Cantwell said. “I think there’s just a false narrative that that’s why I’m choosing. I think relationships won out with Miami. That was kind of what did it for me. I mean, they spent the most time with me. They put the most effort into recruiting me.
“I’ve got a lot of I’ve got a lot of skin in the game with all these schools as far as getting represented by Drew [Rosenhaus] and making sure that I’m gonna be fairly compensated. And I think every school has done a good job with that and being accommodating with that. And I think that anyone who would say otherwise about how I’ve done my recruitment has been just misled.”
While Cantwell didn’t specify which aspect of Nakos’ reporting he took issue with, his comments came one week after the On3 insider reported that Miami had offered the nation’s No. 1 recruit a $2 million NIL deal. But despite his protests, his comments regarding Rosenhaus certainly indicate that money did play a role in this recruitment, as is to be expected in today’s day and age of college football.
How much did the Hurricanes’ NIL offer persuade Cantwell to commit to Miami over the likes of Georgia, Oregon and Ohio State? Only he can truly answer that. But regardless of his payday, it would also be easy for him to point to Cristobal’s track record of developing NFL offensive linemen as another point in favor of the Canes.
As for Nakos, it’s worth noting that he’s already established himself as one of college football’s most reputable reporters, especially with regard to the transfer portal and NIL matters. Look no further than his reporting regarding Nico Iamaleava’s negotiations with Tennessee, which appeared to scoop even the star quarterback’s own father.