Imago
November 29, 2025: Miami Hurricanes defensive end Rueben Bain Jr. 4 rushes the quarterback during the NCAA, College League, USA football game between the Pitt Panthers and the Miami Hurricanes at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. /CSM Pittsburgh USA – ZUMAc04_ 20251129_zma_c04_093 Copyright: xBrentxGudenschwagerx
Imago
November 29, 2025: Miami Hurricanes defensive end Rueben Bain Jr. 4 rushes the quarterback during the NCAA, College League, USA football game between the Pitt Panthers and the Miami Hurricanes at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. /CSM Pittsburgh USA – ZUMAc04_ 20251129_zma_c04_093 Copyright: xBrentxGudenschwagerx
The first big story, as final draft meetings adjourned, dropped late Sunday when it was leaked that top-10 pick Rueben Bain Jr. was the driver of a car involved in an accident in 2024, an accident in which a woman passenger was killed. This has been known inside league circles for a while, but many are now wondering if it will affect Bain’s draft stock.
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The story, initially reported by The Read Optional writer Oliver Connolly, has been making the rounds in scouting circles since January’s Shrine Bowl. Per records and reports reviewed by Connolly, Bain was driving on I-95 in Miami at 4 a.m. on March 17, 2024 “when his vehicle struck another car before careering into concrete barriers.”
The story goes on to say, “Destiny Betts, a 22-year-old college student from Georgia, suffered incapacitating injuries.”
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The police crash report states that Bain “operated his vehicle in a careless or negligent manner,” and he was cited for careless driving, a charge that was eventually dismissed.
Since then additional information has come to light including a tweet from Trey Wallace, the Sr. National Collegiate Sports Reporter for Outkick.com. Wallace tweeted that, according to court documents, Eric Dounn is the owner of Miami Sports 27 INC.
Not reported by Wallace was that Dounn is also the Chief Marketing Officer for the Loyalty Above All agency (LAA), whose founder and CEO is Zach Hiller, an NFLPA registered agent. Amongst Hiller’s clients is Shemar Stewart, first-round pick of the Cincinnati Bengals in 2025.
I first heard about this story during Shrine Bowl practices. While there wasn’t much detail, it was presented in a way that, although Bain was not guilty of any crime, the Miami Hurricanes football program was guilty of sweeping the incident under the rug.
Before The Read Optional made the story public, whispers about the incident grew louder last week. One source told me that Bain has been very close to the vest and not social with the players he’s been training with in the lead-up to the draft, acting almost like an introvert.
Whether this is his personality or a result of Bain knowing what was to come once the story of his accident became public is unknown. As of last week, I was told Bain does not have an agent.
Will the 2024 accident hurt Bain’s draft stock?
The short answer is no, unless the police somehow choose to reopen the case and investigate the accident again, which is unlikely. If the case is somehow reopened, Bain is toast.
Some are comparing this story to the Laremy Tunsil incident that took place just hours before the start of the 2016 NFL Draft.
In my opinion, the two don’t compare.
If there is a similar incident to draw comparisons to, it would be La’el Collins, and that’s only if the case is reopened.
Collins, an offensive tackle out of LSU, was expected to be a top-45 selection in the 2015 draft. Just days before the first round of that draft, a story leaked that Collins was scheduled to talk to state police about the murder of a woman he once had a relationship with.
Despite never being fingered as a suspect in the case and having voluntarily agreed to speak with police, the unknown was enough to leave Collins undrafted. He eventually signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent.
