BALTIMORE _ Reports last week indicated that five-star wide receiver Rakim Jarrett was going to wait until February to sign his National Letter of Intent, giving the No. 20 overall prospect in the country time to think about following through with his commitment to LSU or flip to Maryland.
As it turned out Wednesday, neither Jarrett nor the Terps had to wait that long.
Jarrett, who was the Gatorade Player of the Year in Washington playing for St. John's High, announced that he had signed with Maryland, becoming the first five-star prospect to join the Terps since offensive tackle Damian Prince in 2014. Jarrett is also the highest-rated player to sign in College Park since the rankings were established.
Jarrett becomes the 22nd player to sign so far in the 2020 recruiting class.
The signing of Jarrett, which followed a recent visit to Maryland, bumped up the Terps eight spots to No. 27 overall and four places to No. 6 in the Big Ten, according to 27/7 Sports.
Ja'Kai Green, a three-star offensive tackle from Baltimore's St. Frances, was the first in line for Maryland on Wednesday during National Signing Day.
The 6-foot-6, 317-pound Green, officially signed at 7:01 a.m. Green was quickly followed by three-star wide receiver Deajaun McDougle of Deerfield Beach, Fla., and three-star safeties Riyad Wilmot of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Glen Miller of Orange Park, Fla., who also signed with the Terps.
Linebacker Ruben Hyppolite of Hollywood, Fla., the only four-star prospect to commit to the Terps prior to signing day, also officially committed. As of 8:15 a.m., Maryland had signed nine of the 26 players who had previously committed to coach Mike Locksley and his staff.
Green, an All-Metro selection by The Baltimore Sun as an offensive lineman, was a two-year starter and a team captain for St. Frances, which finished 11-1 and was the top-ranked team in the state for the second straight season.
