3-star LB Fa’Najae Gotay commits & signs with Maryland football

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on Dec. 19 after Gotay’s commitment. It has been updated to reflect his signing the next day.

The new early signing period starts on Wednesday, but Maryland is still making additions to its Class of 2018 as three-star linebacker Fa’Najae Gotay announced his intentions to be a Terp Tuesday morning.

Gotay is the first Maryland commit since three-star Jalen Alexander made the call in October, but he’s the fifth linebacker to commit to the Terps this recruiting cycle; he’ll join three-stars Durrell Nchami, Nihym Anderson, Chance Campbell and Jordan Mosley. With Jermaine Carter Jr., Shane Cockerille and Jalen Brooks all graduating, it’s paramount for Maryland to replace some of that depth in the linebacking corps, and this big haul should help do exactly that.

With Gotay’s commitment, the Terps’ Class of 2018 moves back up to 20th in the 247Sports team rankings. With nearly the entire class expected to sign and very few uncommitted targets, Maryland’s class is almost finished, and if it stays in the top 25, it would be the first time in program history the Terps finished with consecutive top-25 classes.

The 6’0, 205-pound North Fort Myers outside linebacker is the No. 61 prospect at his position and the No. 136 overall prospect in Florida, per the 247Sports Composite rankings. Gotay chose Maryland over Syracuse and Illinois.

UPDATE: Just 24 hours after committing, Gotay is officially signed.