Louisville '23 Target WR Nathanial Joseph Commits to Miami

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football program is off to an unprecedented recruiting run in the 2023 cycle. Their 11-man class sports multiple top-300 commitments, and is on pace to be the best class in school history by a wide margin.

But when dabbling in the waters of high profile recruiting, you're bound to come up short from time to time, and that's exactly what the Cardinals experienced on Tuesday. Miami (Fla.) Edison wide receiver Nathanial "Ray Ray" Joseph, one of the top slot receivers in the 2023 cycle, announced that he has committed to Miami over Louisville.

Louisville worked quietly behind the scenes with Joseph's recruitment. He was previously committed to Clemson, which has a strict no-visit policy with their commits. In the days leading up to the Cardinals' massive mid-June recruiting weekend, Joseph backed off his pledge to the Tigers, and Louisville was able to host him for an official visit.

However, it was the hometown Canes who got Joseph's last official visit this past weekend. Even without said visit, it was always going to be a bit of an uphill battle against Miami for his commitment. Edison is roughly 10 miles from the University of Miami's campus, and Joseph had made several unofficial visits to the Canes while a Clemson commit.

Fortunately, Joseph's decision doesn't leave the Cardinals high and dry at the wide receiver position in the class. They still have commitments from Bellflower (Calif.) St John Bosco receiver teammates DeAndre Moore Jr. and Jahlil McClain, as well as Inglewood (Calif.) HS tight end Jamari Johnson, who serves mainly as a receiving tight end.

Related: Louisville Football Class of 2023 Commitments

In his junior season for Edison, Joseph caught 33 receptions for 632 yards and five touchdowns, while also totaling 227 kick and punt return yards. The 5-foot-8, 170-pound receiver ranks as high as the No. 14 prospect in Florida, the No. 15 wide receiver in the class, and the No. 81 player in the nation according to Rivals.

(Photo of Nathanial Joseph via On3)

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