UCF lands elite 4-star DE with limited football experience

Scott Frost has been working overtime to build a future at UCF yet again after the program was run into the ground by Gus Malzahn. This includes trying to bring in elite recruits for years to come in Orlando, and his latest commitment will do just that.

UCF just landed 4-star edge rusher Alhassan Iddrissu out of St. Thomas Moore High School in Connecticut, who is actually a native of Ghana. Iddrissu actually only began his football career recently, but seemed to pick it up quickly and showed great skill on the field. The young defensive end had an official visit with UCF just days ago, and it didn't take long for him to decide Orlando would be his future home.

"I love Orlando, I love the coaching staff and the campus," Iddrissu told UCFSports. "I feel like Coach Frost, they've got something great going on over there, it was a great feeling."

Iddrissu initially came to the United States to play basketball, but made the switch to the football field and quickly caught the eyes of many big-time programs. Iddrissu received offers from schools such as Texas A&M, Michigan, Florida State, USC, Washington, West Virginia, Cal, UCF, and other schools, and even had an official visit with Maryland earlier this month.

After he announced his commitment to UCF, a school he knew right away he wanted to attend, Iddrissu cancelled two other official visits to Washington State and Temple.

The 6-foot-6, 240-pound edge will be able to give immediate help on the defensive side of the ball, even with his limited football experience. Iddrissu is ranked as the No. 38 edge in the Class of 2026 and the No. 1 player in the state of Connecticut, marking this as one of Frost's biggest pickups in the 2026 recruiting class.

Iddrissu is the 11th prospect to commit to UCF and the highest-rated recruit in the class.