The main issues that many Tar Heel fans have had with the 2024 class are that it doesn’t have the headliners that prior classes have had and that they haven’t landed the top players in the state. Monday, the team checked both of those boxes with their biggest commitment of the cycle in the form of an in-state 4✮ safety.
Just moments ago, 2024 4✮ S Malcolm Ziglar announced his commitment to the Tar Heels at a ceremony at his high school. They edged out his other seven finalists, which includes South Carolina who attempted to make a late push for him. He took official visits to both Chapel Hill and Columbia and it feels like the Tar Heels getting the final say was important.
Ziglar, the No. 17 safety in the 2024 class according to 247Sports Composite player rankings, is preparing for his senior season at Fuquay-Varina High School in Fuquay-Varina, NC. Last year as a junior, Ziglar pulled in six interceptions, two of which he returned for a touchdown and registered six pass breakups. That earned him first team all-conference and third team all-state honors for a Bengals team that finished the season 6-5. As a sophomore in 2021, Ziglar finished the season with four interceptions and seven pass breakups on the way to first team all-conference honors once again.
Ziglar’s tape is an exciting one to watch. He is yet another versatile defensive back that can play either safety or corner. His speed is elite and shows up constantly in many different aspects of the game. His ability to close on the football combines well with his ability to play the football to make him a lethal turnover threat to opposing quarterbacks. His coverage skills are very strong for both a corner and safety and he thrives in both zone and man coverage, which fits the Tar Heels defensive scheme well. You don’t see him get involved in the run game at all on his tape, but with him spending more time at corner than safety this past season it makes sense. The Tar Heels came into the day with a clear future at free safety, but Ziglar looks like he fits that perfectly and he has the skillset to come in and make an impact immediately.
This commitment means the Tar Heels 2024 class now has 24 commits as it appears long snapper Grant Mills will not be on scholarship despite earlier reports that he would be. With Ziglar being the Tar Heels top rated commit, the team's class jumps back into the top 20 according to the 247Sports Composite team rankings. This also gives the team their first commitment from a top ten player in the class, something that this staff sorely needed in this class.
Podcast