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3-star LB Ashanti Cistrunk commits to Ole Miss

Jon Sumrall continues his long journey of repairing the linebacker room.

By Zach Berry
Mississippi v Mississippi State Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images

A week removed from spring break, the Ole Miss Rebels are back at it again at spring practice. And the recruiting is back at it again as well. New linebackers coach Jon Sumrall helped close a 2018 signing class that finished in the top 30 despite a NCAA cloud and bowl ban, and now he has received a commitment from his third guy in the 2019 class, following Diwun Black and Jay Stanley over the weekend.

Three-star outside linebacker Ashanti Cistrunk out of Louisville, Miss. has given Sumrall and the Ole Miss Rebels a verbal pledge to join the #MississippiMade movement. The newest member of the 2019 class is relatively unknown at this point but he is starting to generate interest from the big fellas in the SEC West division.

As of this writing, he only holds two offers from the Rebs and Memphis, but he is generating considerable interest from Alabama, LSU, Mississippi State, and Southern Miss. He is the 15th member of Matt Luke’s 2019 class and the 9th Mississippi native on the commitment list. As a junior, Cistrunk finished the season with 133 total tackles, six tackles for loss, five interceptions, four sacks, three forced fumbles, two pass deflections, and two fumble recoveries.

How does he fit in?

The 6’2, 195-pounder from Louisville High School product visited Oxford in February for an unofficial visit and after this weekend’s trip to the 662 to see Saturday’s scrimmage, he made the decision to pull the trigger. The nation’s No. 55 outside linebacker is a welcomed addition to the class that had two linebackers in it before Ashanti made the call. But, in order to improve the position greatly, Sumrall needs to add plenty more.

On film, there is a lot to like. Cistrunk is a phenomenal athlete who appears extremely comfortable dropping back into coverage and playing zone or man whether it be covering a back out of the backfield or a receiver in the slot when he plays safety for Louisville. He has an ideal frame for today’s college football where he looks very capable of adding 10-15 pounds before his arrival in Oxford where he can be an athletic thumper for Sumrall on the outside.

Highlights