UNC Football: Tar Heels land top five player in 2022 class

Mack Brown and the UNC Football program have reeled in a big fish for their 2022 recruiting class on Saturday.

Five-star defensive tackle Travis Shaw ended his recruitment on Saturday night with a verbal commitment to North Carolina, giving the Tar Heels their highest-ranked recruit in the second Mack Brown era and one of their top rated all time. Shaw announced his decision with a special ceremony at his high school in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Shaw had a total of 28 offers in his recruitment but picked UNC over finalists Georgia, Clemson and North Carolina A&T. With the commitment of Shaw, UNC’s 2022 class jumps into the top 15 nationally and into the top 3 for the Atlantic Coast Conference behind only Florida State and Clemson respectfully.

The 6-foot-6, 330-pound Shaw is coming off an impressive junior season at Grimsley where he finished with 28 tackles for loss while leading his team to a state title in the Spring. He’s set to enter his senior year this Fall and will look to continue to dominate on the defensive line.

Shaw is ranked No. 4 nationally, the No. 2 defensive lineman and the top player in the state of North Carolina per the 247Sports recruiting rankings. He’s not only one of the top defensive players but one of the best overall players in the class.

Since Brown returned for a second stint, UNC has made it a priority to land the top in-state talents as evident by his previous two recruiting classes. But in 2022, Shaw becomes only the fourth player in the state of North Carolina to commit to UNC.

UNC is still in pursuit of a handful of talented prospects in the 2022 recruiting class as Brown and his staff hope to continue to build this class into the Fall.

For more on Brown and other UNC Football recruiting targets, please make sure to check back with Keeping It Heel.