DAVIE, Fla. — The Western High School Wildcats are loading up for the 2023 season thanks to returning talent and several new additions to the roster liked Tovani Mizell.
The four-star running back is back in Broward County after spending his junior season up at Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha Catholic. A wide-open recruitment, following a parting of ways with Georgia back in March, has followed him back to south Florida all the same.
There is no rush to make a decision this time around.
“It’s pretty tough to handle, but I’m trying to take my time with the process,” Mizell told Rivals. “A lot of coaches have been hitting me up, so I’m trying to take my time, take my official visits during the summer and probably in the fall, too.”
A pair of official visits have recently been set, with more likely for the month of June.
Kentucky, which Mizell will take the weekend of June 16, has been set. The new addition is North Carolina, set for the weekend prior, which came together after a strong first impression of Chapel Hill in April.
“I love UNC, my first time actually visiting there was a little over a month ago,” he said. “Coach (Larry) Porter has been around here, too, and he has been wanting my to check them out. Getting to see Mack Brown was really cool, he’s obviously one of the greatest coaches in college football. It means a lot that he’s high on me.”
UK has had assistant coaches at WHS this spring, too, and there is a sense the Wildcats will hand around this recruitment until its conclusion.
“Coach (Jay) Boulware just got the job back,” Mizell said. “He was with Pittsburgh last year in the NFL and he was at Kentucky before, too. He played at a very high level and coached at a very high level, so he knows what it looks like. Liam Coen runs that pro-style offense, something I can definitely see myself fitting into.”
Soon after getting back on the recruiting market, Mizell took a trip to Norman and Oklahoma has been viewed as a strong contender ever since. An official visit back to campus there is likely, though not yet set.
“They’re definitely building something there for sure,” he said of OU. “I love Coach (Brent) Venables, he’s been doing good since he took over. I love Coach (Jeff) Lebby, he’s cool and I’ve been on the phone with him a few times. I love coach (DeMarco) Murray. Me and him have been having a really strong relationship for the last year or so. He’s a cool person to talk to and he’s been at the highest level.
“It means a lot coming from him, and that he’s recruiting me, seeing my skillset and thinking I’m potentially a top back.”
Mizell also named Virginia Tech, where new teammate and longtime friend Davi Belfort is verbally committed, Tennessee, Florida, Arizona and South Florida among additional potential official visit destinations before all is said and done.
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John Garcia Jr., National Recruiting Analyst
