Florida State 2026 DB commit Tedarius Hughes recaps game-day visit to Miami

Miami Gardens, Fla. — Whether committed to the Miami Hurricanes or not, top-tier prospects in South Florida always have the opportunity to attend high-profile games at Hard Rock Stadium.

Florida State 2026 safety commit Tedarius Hughes from local powerhouse program Miami Northwestern attended the season-opener between Miami and Notre Dame, and noticed the changes on the coaching staff and the roster on the field Sunday night. The then tenth-ranked Hurricanes beat the then sixth-ranked Irish 27-24.

“I feel like they came out and dominated,” Hughes said after the game. “Different quarterback, different DBs coach. With a little bit of change, I feel they came out and executed well against a pretty good team. Just that win alone sets a good standard and energy for the rest of the season.”

The four-star, six-foot-two, 170-pound defensive back liked what he saw from the Miami coaches rotating defensive backs.

“I saw a lot of guys get in. I realized on a third down, they put in more DBs on the field. Just realizing the scheme that they’re running and how they use their players is definitely an eye-opening thing for me.”

Hughes, who took official visits to Florida State and Syracuse, will very likely take an OV to Miami during the season.

“It didn’t take an OV to Miami, so I probably see myself taking an OV sometime after one of my games this season. Probably try to get back to one of these games and take an OV for sure.”

Nebraska is also in line for an OV from Hughes, but a specific date has not been finalized.

“I don’t have an exact date, but I’m just trying to fit it in with my football schedule at Northwestern.”

Hughes was thoroughly impressed with the atmosphere at Hard Rock Sunday night, and it compares to the game day experience in Tallahassee for an FSU game, in his opinion.

“It’s kind of the same, both get loud. It’s just a different school.”

The Seminole commit made his pledge to FSU over a year ago and was quite pleased with what he saw from the Noles on Saturday versus Alabama. The Noles beat the Tide 31-17.

“That was obviously great too for me, man. Especially coming off the season we had last year, that was great.”

His relationship with the Florida State staff remains strong after being committed to the program for over a year.

“I talk to them almost every day. I’ve been committed for over a year. They just know that I’m kind of locked in. Even though I’m viewing other schools, I’m pretty sure I’m locked in with Florida State right now.”