It didn’t take long.

Just 30 minutes after Ole Miss’ 2021 class lost a valuable piece when Oxford, Miss. kicker Jack Tannehill announced he was re-opening his recruitment and backing off his commitment to Lane Kiffin, special teams coach Blake Gideon added another.

Five-star kicker and punter Cade Costa announced on Twitter a short time after that he was ending his recruitment and was verbally committing to the Rebels. The Mandeville, La., native chose Ole Miss over offers from Air Force, Army, Louisiana, Penn and UConn and heavy interest from Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia Tech, LSU, Louisiana Tech, Memphis, Rice, Rutgers, Tulane and Virginia Tech.

As a three-year starter at Mandeville High School, Costa has made three game-winning field goals for the Skippers as well as being named 5A All-District and All-Parish honors as a junior. The three-sport star and No. 7 kicker and No. 57 punter in the country per Chris Sailer Kicking sports a 4.1 grade point average and a 30 ACT score.

I talked with the newest member of Kiffin's 2021 class to discuss his commitment, his relationship with Gideon, what he knows about Ole Miss, and how he has been dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown.

Costa has been affected just like every other commit during this unorthodox recruiting cycle, but he does know a little about Oxford and Ole Miss.

"I love the campus and history of the place," Costa said. "Being driving distance was huge as well as the atmosphere the university brings to the table."

Costa has been in talks with Gideon for a while now and when he extended the offer Caden didn't waste any time letting him know his intentions.

"When Coach (Blake) Gideon asked if I wanted to be a Rebel, I said I was all in," Costa said.

The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Costa has been a well-known commodity on the kicking circuit for a few years now. At the Hammer Kicking Academy earlier this summer, Costa recorded the longest kickoff of the camp at 76.3 yards with a hang time of 4.21 seconds. In his three years as the Skippers' placekicker, he has made 117-of-121 point after attempts and 22-of-31 field goals.

Despite quarantine taking its toll across the country, Costa has been busy.

"I've been on the phone constantly," Costa said with a laugh. "ULL, UConn, Air Force, Pennsylvania and Army offered me and I had a few more on the way this weekend."

The three-sport star has been busy fielding calls and accepting offers, but it doesn't take away from his schoolwork. Costa currently sports an impressive 4.1 grade point average and a 30 ACT score.

"As of now I don't plan on it," Costa replied when asked about graduating early. "But that could change depending on the season's status."

The Rebels and Gideon are recruiting the state of Louisiana hard. Prospects like Byron Turner and Logan Diggs are high on Ole Miss' board. I asked Costa if he would try to help Kiffin and Co. out and do some recruiting for them.

"Absolutely," Costa said. "I'll do whatever I can."

The seventh 2021 commit has yet to be ranked by Rivals, but he is a 4.5-star kicker per Chris Sailer's kicker rankings and the 57th-ranked punter as well.