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Miami Hurricanes complete flip, land pledge from former Clemson commit Nathaniel Joseph

Nathaniel Joseph is one of the most explosive offensive weapons in South Florida and the Miami Hurricanes made sure he won’t be leaving for college.

The four-star wide receiver orally committed to Miami on Tuesday, exactly two weeks after he decommitted from the Clemson Tigers.

The Edison star announced his commitment on Twitter after spending the weekend in Coral Gables on an official visit, calling the decision a “dream come true.”

Joseph is already a two-time first-team all-county selection by the Miami Herald and the the No. 105 overall prospect in the 247Sports.com composite rankings for the Class of 2023—perhaps the best pure slot receiver in the country. The 5-foot-8, 170-pound wideout had 41 catches for 832 yards and 12 touchdowns last year, guiding the Red Raiders to a second straight winning season after they’d gone three years without one.

Even when Joseph was committed to Clemson, the Hurricanes aggressively pursued the local athlete, bringing him to campus for somewhere around a dozens visits in the nearly seven months since coach Mario Cristobal took over as coach. After one recent visit, Joseph said he always figured he’d wind up playing for his hometown team, he just barely heard from former coach Manny Diaz and Miami’s previous coaching staff.

“They made it easy for me to get out and leave,” Joseph said June 13, a day before he decommitted from the Tigers. “I always tell everybody, If Miami would’ve been recruiting me how this staff is recruiting me from the jump, I would’ve been going to Miami.”

The Hurricanes, however, still had to beat out the Louisville Cardinals and Texas A&M Aggies to land the All-American receiver, and they were able to lock up his commitment over the weekend.

This commitment is a big one for Miami and not just because he’s only the third blue-chip recruit to join the Hurricanes’ 2023 recruiting class. Joseph gives Miami an important local foothold and a potential leader in the class because of the respect he has across the region, both for his electrifying play at Edison and his 7-on-7 work for South Florida Express.

Joseph’s commitment moves Miami’s 2023 class up into the top 30, from No. 36 to No. 26.