Al

Blades Jr.

Blades Jr. (6'1/188) is expected to be Miami’s top cornerback this fall, but he still hasn’t been fully cleared to play. One issue was his being diagnosed with myocarditis back in December. While it was reported at the time that Blades would be down for at least three months, that isn’t a “concrete” timeline. Also problematic has been a recent stress fracture. While Blades is making progress, he still isn’t a full go at practice. According to The Athletic, the team “thinks” that Blades will be ready for the Hurricanes’ season opener against Alabama. Whether he is or not, this makes Georgia transfer Tyrique Stevenson a player of even greater importance to the Miami secondary.

Blades posted on Twitter that he had recently been going through COVID protocols and testing. In doing so, Blades (6'1/192) mentioned that doctors were concerned with some of his bloodwork in relation to his heart. The junior DB has since been diagnosed with myocarditis, which will keep him out of all action for at least the next three months and potentially longer. It’s unclear how much this could affect his 2021 season, if at all. Blades has seven pass breakups and two picks this season.

Good news for Rivals’ Rob Cassidy, who wrote earlier this month that he would “happily eat crow” if Blades did not pledge himself to the Miami cause. The 6-foot, 170-pound corner had been making noise at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge that he was smitten with Tennessee, talk which Cassidy firmly believed to be a smokescreen for his interest in the Hurricanes. As for what he will bring to the table for Miami, ESPN’s Billy Tucker compares Blades to former FSU star S Jalen Ramsey, noting that “Blades shows the fast reactions and explosive, clean transitional and closing skills that Ramsey flashed at Brentwood Academy.” The Worldwide Leader ranks him as the No. 37 overall prospect for the 2018 cycle. They are in almost complete lockstep with Rivals, which slots Blades into their master list at No. 35 overall.

“Al Blades really wants you to think he’s considering Tennessee. Al Blades really wants you to think he’s not silently committed to Miami,” Cassidy noted of Blades’ public persona at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge, later writing that "[a]nyone who bought it is probably also a solid target for one of those Nigerian prince email scams.” The 6-foot, 170-pounder ranks as Rivals’ No. 35 overall prospect for the 2018 cycle.