As the 2026 college football season approaches, Legacy Library has been studying up on former South Florida high school players poised to thrive at the mid-major level this fall.
After previously looking at the American, Conference USA, and the Mid-American Conference, we’re moving to the Mountain West Conference. For this list, we are defining South Florida as Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties. Given the current state of college athletics and the ever-changing rosters in the transfer portal era, we have included only schools that have publicly released official 2026 rosters.
Although Hawaii, Nevada, North Dakota State, and UTEP have a handful of Florida players, none meet our South Florida requirements. The same applies to San Jose State and Wyoming, which each have only one Florida player, neither of whom is from South Florida. However, check back later for a separate story dedicated to the non-South Florida players in the MWC!
Air Force
Max Mustell, DB, St. Thomas Aquinas, So.: Mustell broke onto the scene in a big way, snagging three interceptions and tallying 59 tackles as a true freshman. He started nine games and should play a pivotal role for an Air Force team seeking its first bowl game since 2023.
New Mexico
Michael Kern, P, St. Thomas Aquinas, Jr.: Punters are people too! Kern joins the Lobos after previously serving as the starting punter at Texas and California. He averaged 41.6 yards per punt for the Longhorns in 2024 and had a season-long 57-yard punt against Arizona State in the CFP quarterfinals.
Kern played the 2025 season at Cal and averaged 41.5 yards per kick for the Golden Bears.
Nick Romero, K, St. Thomas Aquinas, So.: Romero earned first-team All-Northeast Conference honors at Wagner last year after going 13-of-14 on field goals and 18-of-20 on extra points. He ended his freshman season with a 92.9% field-goal rate, trailing only Butler’s Ryan Short’s 93.8%.
Northern Illinois
Montrel Canion, DT, Western, R-Fr.: Canion had two tackles in four games as a true freshman. Look for him to see increased playing time in his second collegiate season.
UNLV
Elias Rudolph, OLB, Deerfield Beach, R-So.: A four-star high school prospect who began his career at Miami, Rudolph had 10 tackles and 1 ½ sacks for the Rebels. What does he have in store for his second UNLV campaign?
Taz Reddicks, WR, Dillard, R-Jr.: Reddicks transfers in from Oregon State, where he had 47 catches and 613 yards the last two years. That experience should prove crucial for a UNLV program seeking its fourth straight winning season.
Troy Stellato, WR, Cardinal Gibbons, Sr.: Although Stellato only had a four-yard catch at Kentucky last year, the Rebels are gambling (pun not intended) on him resembling his Clemson self. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Stellato had 65 catches, 600 yards, and two touchdowns over 24 games (11 starts) with the Tigers.
Which former Florida high school players are you expected to see in college football this season? Let us know!
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