What a difference a few weeks make.
That’s recruiting, in a nutshell, during the month of June. Even underclassmen recruits like class of 2026 four-star quarterback Dereon Coleman see the process make a shift.
Just over two weeks after earning the Hurricane offer, the Orlando (Fla.) Jones dual-threat went public with a commitment to Miami to celebrate his 17th birthday on Wednesday evening.
“They kept it real with me since the process started,” Coleman told Rivals. “But then the way they pushed since offering me, it was a different type of push. No college really did that. That meant something.
“Blowing my phone up every day, contact every day, they wanted me there. Head coach (Mario Cristobal) got involved a lot, so I knew he really wanted me.”
Cristobal, offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson and others on staff saw Coleman come to Coral Gables the last two summers and win the program’s 7-on-7 tournament against many of the best programs in the state. Doing so in mid June, without No. 1 wide receiver Vernell Brown III no less, resulted in The U extending the offer to the four-star.
From that point on, the Hurricanes became the trending program with the state’s No. 2 dual-threat in the rising-junior class.
“I didn’t really want to leave Florida,” Coleman said. “And it was the relationship I built with them over time pushed it a lot. Coach Dawson has been talking to me for a little minute. The offense he runs….he’s a hand’s on guy just like the coach I have now. I know I’ll be able to fit in their scheme easily, there’s a lot of similarities.
“Outside of football, he could be like a mentor to you. It’s family, not just football, with him. He cares who you are and how you are.”
The UM offensive staff, in its press for Coleman’s commitment, have drawn lofty comparisons to the current starter in town.
“They say I remind them of Cam (Ward),” he said. “They say I’m an alpha. They want to get me around him more to see what I can build off of from him.”
The current and future passer for Cristobal’s program have begun connecting on their own. It comes just in time as each is poised to handle the pressure of taking over a program full-time as ‘the guy.’ Ward will do so in the ACC and Coleman will at Jones, where he split some time with Florida State freshman Trever Jackson in 2023.
Still, Coleman was able to rack up about 2,500 total yards and 20 scores as a sophomore, completing better than 63 percent of his pass attempts along the way. The newest Cane expects a big 2024 before his senior season and eventual enrollment in Coral Gables.
The confidence doesn’t end there.
“Miami is getting a dog, they’re getting an alpha,” Coleman said. “They’re gonna get a ring out of me. They didn’t get that in a long time.
“It’s time to bring Miami back to what Miami was.”
