BREAKING: 2025 ESPN Top-100 Target Lauren Jacobs Commits to Coach Yo, Ole Miss
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss women’s basketball and head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin have picked up their first commitment for the class of 2025. Lauren Jacobs, an ESPN Top 100 player who visited Ole Miss last weekend, made the news official on her social media Saturday morning.
4⭐️ Lauren Jacobs (no. 89 espnW 100) has committed to Ole Miss‼️@LaurenJacobs25 | @OleMissWBB pic.twitter.com/2g7PnBePrH
— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) September 14, 2024
Jacobs, a 5-foot-9 guard, is currently ranked No. 89 in the ESPNW Top-100 recruiting rankings for the Class of 2025. She is currently rated as a 4-star prospect and the No. 1 high school player from the state of South Carolina.
Highlights from the Capital Cool Classic. Thank you ESPN Hoopgurlz for ranking me in the Top 100! I’m not done yet! @RBA_events @NikeGirlsEYBL @palmetto76erawe @_ajawilson22 @JeromeFleetwood @PGH_SCarolina @PBRhoops @ESPN_WomenHoop pic.twitter.com/nfgqaWixUA
— Lauren Jacobs (@LaurenJacobs25) June 8, 2024
Jacobs has won four state championships in her high school career, two of which came early on at Carter Newman, and most recently back-to-back at Heathwood Hall.
On August 26th, Jacobs released the list of her top 10 schools, and the Rebels were in good company with some of the nation’s best programs.
Top 10!🙏🏾 @palmetto76erawe @AthleticsHHES @HeathwoodHall @JeromeFleetwood @CoachBriZimm pic.twitter.com/7MUPS2HRms
— Lauren Jacobs (@LaurenJacobs25) August 26, 2024
She was set to take other visits, but not too long after her visit to Oxford, Jacobs decided Ole Miss is the place she wants to be.
BREAKING
Lauren Jacobs, a 4⭐️ G from South Carolina is on campus for an official visit at Ole Miss.
Jacobs is the #1 prospect in the state of SC and on the ESPNW Top-100 list. A versatile scorer who averaged 30+ PPG.https://t.co/CVW850m9qo pic.twitter.com/PdbJWQURFD
— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) September 7, 2024
This commitment marks a quick start to the recruiting cycle for Coach Yo as Jacobs becomes the centerpiece of this class. This is now back-to-back years that Ole Miss has added a player ranked in the ESPNW Top-100.
The Rebel Walk recently caught up with the newest commitment to learn a little bit more about the prolific scorer from South Carolina.
Meeting Lauren Jacobs
Jacobs grew fond of basketball at a young age, as she started playing when she was in the third grade. From there on out, she never put the ball down and has only raised up her level of training.
Her basketball pedigree runs in the family as her mother, Cheryl Brown-Jacobs, is a former standout at Tuskegee University and played overseas in Portugal for two years. Lauren’s mother is the one who introduced her to the game, and is also the one who pushed her forward.
At a young age, Jacob’s parents encouraged her to play in co-ed recreational leagues and to play against older competition.
“It was elementary school and it was co-ed, so I was like one of the only girls on the team. And then my parents would always tell me, ‘You don’t go out there and let those boys take your ball. You beat them down the court.’ So I feel like that’s where I really got my aggressiveness from that I have now. I feel like it really helped me in the long run, so I’m glad that it happened“
Lauren Jacobs
Noticeably, Jacobs’ game began to improve. She was training with Jerome Dickerson with whom she shares a close relationship. All the training and times she put in working and pushing herself began to pay off as she received her first offer in 8th grade. Jacobs attended a camp at Furman University, standing out as one of the youngest players there, and that led to her first offer.
“I’ve been training with him (Dickerson) since the fourth grade, and I still train with him to this day. He and Coach Yo, they’ve been close…He coaches me for AAU, and then he’s also our trainer for high school.”
Lauren Jacobs on Jerome Dickerson
Jacobs has been putting together a prolific prep career in South Carolina. Heathwood Hall, where she is finishing up her high school career, is the same high school where current Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson played. Jacobs also plays for the A’Ja Wilson Elite travel team. Current Ole Miss forward, J’Adore Young also played for the same summer league program a couple of years ago.
As a junior last year at Heathwood Hall, Jacobs averaged 31.5 PPG in 23 contests per MaxPreps. She also averaged 7.0 rebounds, 4.2 steals and 2.1 assists per game. Her 31.5 PPG ranked 14th nationally in scoring.
Over her four years of varsity basketball she has played, Jacobs has recorded a career average of 20.2 PTS, 6.2 REB, and 3.5 STL per game. She has led her Highlanders to back-to-back 4A SCISA State Titles. Recently, Jacobs was invited to the Wootten Top-150 camp in Las Vegas.
Even with the high-scoring prowess, and the multiple state championships, Jacobs still has goals for what she wants to accomplish before moving on to the collegiate game. The senior is close to 2,000 career points at Heathwood High along with 500 career assists and wants to add another state championship to her resume.
Finding Ole Miss
While visiting with Jacobs recently, we had the opportunity to find out what it is about Ole Miss that really stood out.
It all started at an Ole Miss camp in 2023 where Jacobs began to connect with Coach Yo. The talented player earned an offer from the Rebels on June 10th of 2023.
I am super excited to receive an offer from Ole Miss🙏🏾! Thanks Coach Yo❤️ @YolettMcCuin @CoachJaida @ChrisAyers23 @briannapatton22 @palmetto76erawe @PGH_SCarolina @JeromeFleetwood @AthleticsHHES @CoachBriZimm @CGBR27 @ASGRBasketball pic.twitter.com/06pQe8tKBs
— Lauren Jacobs (@LaurenJacobs25) June 11, 2023
Her relationship with the Rebels’ head coach grew closer on her recent official visit, as well as on an earlier unofficial visit. It is this growing bond and Coach Yo’s vision for her and the future that Jacobs says is a major factor that led her to Ole Miss:
“What really stood out to me was Coach Yo and her vision for her program, how she speaks highly of her team and how she puts her trust in her team. She know’s that she’s going to get to a national championship, but she needs the right people to do it. Her vision for the team and her explaining her vision for my future and how I can benefit from her program really stood out.“
Lauren Jacobs on why she chose Ole Miss
Some of the players on the Ole Miss team started following Jacobs on social media, and she tells us she noticed their family aspect as well.
“Some of the other players I met on my unofficial visit follow me on social media, so I think those relationships are going to grow over time, so I’m really excited for that too.“
Lauren Jacobs
But there’s also far more to Jacobs than just basketball.
She also has an interest in servicing the community, something she has been doing since the eighth grade. She tells us one day she would like to start her own foundation that focuses on helping children who face economic and other hardships.
Jacobs also spoke with us about meeting some of Ole Miss’ institutional leaders while she was on her visit and it made an impression on her.
“I met with a lot of great people like the Chancellor. I met with the Dean of the Honors College. That really stood out to me. It is like they are growing leaders and people who are not just good athletes, but good all-around people and people who are going to be great in the future.”
Lauren Jacobs on Ole Miss
On the Court…
Jacobs tries to mirror her game after Jackie Young as she is a big Aces fan. It’s not just that fandom, though, that propels her to emulate Young; it is her mentality and traits. Jacobs sees herself as a three-level scorer who is aggressive on both ends of the floor, one who can generate paint touches while using her body control.
“She (Jackie Young) doesn’t run from contact, and I feel like I do the same. So I really think my game resembles her a lot — so you can go right at somebody.“
Lauren Jacobs
After attacking, Jacobs isn’t scared of contact and seeks out opponents to go right after. She plays as a lead guard who can really fill up the scoring column. She has elite drive and kick ability and can take players one-on-one. Jacobs shooting range is also an underrated aspect of her game that people may not notice — but they will.
Congratulations to Lauren and to Coach Yo and the Rebels!
TJ Oxley
TJ Oxley is the Vice President of Operations and the Director of Community Relations for The Rebel Walk. He is also the Director of Basketball Content and Senior Basketball Writer. He has over five years of experience providing in-depth analysis of college basketball through multiple platforms. A former MBA graduate of Ole Miss, TJ started with The Rebel Walk in 2019.
