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UNC Football: 5-star Tony Grimes to reclassify

By Zack Pearson

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 05: Head coach Mack Brown of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacts after their 38-22 win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Bobby Dodd Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 05: Head coach Mack Brown of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacts after their 38-22 win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Bobby Dodd Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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UNC Football five-star recruit Tony Grimes has made a decision to reclassify from 2021 to 2020 and become eligible this season

As we still await a decision on the 2020 college football season from the NCAA and Atlantic Coast Conference, the UNC Football program received some big news potentially regarding the upcoming year.

Just a few weeks ago the program landed five-star defensive back Tony Grimes as he picked the Tar Heels over Texas A&M, Georgia, and Ohio State. Grimes is the highest-rated recruit in over 12 years to pick the Tar Heels.

As soon as Grimes picked UNC, their class in 2021 jumped back into the Top 3 landing at No. 3 for the team rankings. But that’s going to change a bit in terms of that ranking.

With rumors swirling that Grimes could reclassify, on Friday he made his decision. The five-star defensive back tweeted out that he will reclassify to the 2020 class and enroll early at North Carolina, arriving on campus August 1st.

https://twitter.com/757EliteDB/status/1281665991332827136

The move is significant for a few different reasons. First UNC’s defense gets a stud five-star recruit to add to their class and unit that improved last season. The secondary improves big time with the addition of Grimes and he has the chance to be a starter right away.

But the other impact may not be so good.

There’s still some uncertainty about the potential 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. On Thursday, the Big Ten announced that they would play a conference-only schedule for the 2020 season with the ACC and PAC 12 expected to announce the same. While that isn’t a good sign, at least there would be games played in that scenario.

The other option for Grimes, who is ranked as the No. 1 defensive back in 2021, is to potentially redshirt. A player gets four games before they can redshirt and re-gain a year of eligibility but per Inside Carolina, it’s unlikely he goes that route.

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For more on Grimes and other UNC Football players, please check back with Keeping It Heel.

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