Local four-star on Maryland's bowl success: "They definitely practice what they preach"

McDonogh (MD) four-star Jeff Exinor didn’t have much time to soak in the loss in the MIAA championship game against Archbishop Spalding as the 6-foot-1, 205-pound athlete made the quick transition to basketball, a sport he’s also grown up playing. On the gridiron, he capped his junior season off with a first-team offense and All-Metro selection after posting 872 yards and 11 touchdowns on 72 catches.

Now, Exinor is looking at reaching the next milestone in McDonogh’s program as they prepare to face St. Frances on Wednesday. “I already hit 1,000 career points so I’m just trying to keep going and try to get the scoring record,” he told IBG.

Even after the football season and basketball practice, Exinor is training locally and looks ahead to 7-on-7 in the spring as he looks to develop heading into his final season. The athletic four-star target has long drawn the ‘athlete’ tag in his recruitments with schools evaluating him at both wide receiver and safety, but Exinor sees himself transitioning better on the offensive side of the ball.

Junior season highlights!💪🏿https://t.co/whPIEORxV0

— Jeff “El Jefe” Exinor (@JrExinor) November 22, 2023

“I’m trying to really focus on receiver. I feel like that’s what my body type fits the best,” he added.

Boston College, Duke, Maryland, Michigan, Oregon, Penn State, Syracuse, Tennessee, USC and Virginia Tech are among the schools who’ve jumped into the early picture with his recruitment still very much open, but there’s one ACC school that’s been making a strong push as of late. After reaffirming the initial verbal offer back in mid-December, Syracuse assistant wide receivers coach Devin Redd has led the renewed effort as the Orange have made the DMV an early emphasis.

Syracuse is a school that Exinor is plenty familiar with having visited last March, but he’s watched the same group of schools stay in contact through the early part of the offseason.

That includes Maryland where offensive line coach Brian Braswell is still leading efforts. “It’s mainly him because that’s the area coach. Every once in a while, we chit chat. He sends me the graphics and we’ll have conversations after that, but nothing too heavy.”

While his fall schedule derailed plans to visit for one of Maryland’s home games in 2023, Exinor was able to tune into Maryland’s bowl win vs. Auburn when the performance of one McDonogh product caught his eye.

“My man Preston [Howard] scored, he got his first touchdown. I was busy but I watched a little bit of it then me and my family went back and watched the highlights. And Dante [Trader Jr.], he balled out too.”

Maryland’s bowl win vs. Auburn secured consecutive eight-win seasons for the first time in over 20 years, and after Exinor was able to visit last summer to hear head coach Mike Locksley’s vision, the signs of success in year five didn’t go unnoticed.

“They definitely practice what they preach. That’s important especially knowing if I go there, what’s being said is what’s getting done. Especially the last few years, it’s been getting better and better. They’ve been closer and closer to the Big Ten East. They’ve been in the consistent running for beating those big teams. They’re going to do it soon. It matters.”

Plans for future visits remain fluid, but Exinor could make his way north to check out first-year head coach Fran Brown and the Orange.

“I’m still in the talks with my parents but I know one we’re heavily considering is Syracuse. Somewhere like January 20^th.”

Jeff Exinor is rated a four-star prospect and a 90 overall by On3, sitting as the seventh-best prospect in Maryland and the 239^th-best prospect in the nation.

May 19, 2024

Local four-star on Maryland’s bowl success: “They definitely practice what they preach”

Ahmed Ghafir