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North Carolina made a big splash on the recruiting trail on Monday afternoon.
The Tar Heels earned a commitment from 4-star defensive lineman Trashan Ruffin, who was previously committed to Texas A&M. Ruffin, a North Carolina native, had been committed to the Aggies since October of 2024 before flipping his decision on Monday.
He shared the news of his commitment with On3’s Hayes Fawcett:
Ruffin is a huge pickup for the Tar Heels in the class of 2026. He’s the No. 195 overall player and the No. 24 defensive lineman in this class, per 247Sports Composite rankings. He’s also the No. 12 player from the state of North Carolina, so keeping him in his home state was a big priority for UNC.
Ruffin also had major offers from programs such as Alabama, LSU, Ohio State and numerous others. But as of now, he’s set to begin his collegiate career in Chapel Hill next year.
North Carolina now has 9 commitments in its 2026 high school recruiting class, which will be its first full cycle with Bill Belichick in charge. Ruffin is the highest-rated commit to date for UNC and the only blue-chip prospect to commit so far.
Carolina’s 2026 recruiting class currently sits at No. 26 in the nationally rankings, per 247Sports Composite rankings.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
