Charleston Collins Talks Miami Hurricanes Offer, Jason Taylor Relationship
The state of Arkansas is not a traditional recruiting area for the Miami Hurricanes, but it did produce legendary defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy, who was an All-American in 1989. With Kennedy's dominant performance helping lead the way, Miami won the 1989 National Championship.
Kennedy went on to be the third overall pick in the 1990 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks. His professional career eventually led him to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. While no prospect should be expected to reach the level of the late Kennedy, Miami is recruiting a talented defensive lineman from Arkansas once again.
Little Rock (Ark.) Wilbur D. Mills 2024 defensive lineman Charleston Collins has seen his recruitment skyrocket in the past few months, with the rising junior earning 16 offers since April.
"My recruitment started picking up after I got the Ole Miss offer ... Ole Miss was my first out-of-state offer," Collins told All Hurricanes on Wednesday. "I got the offer right before camp season."
Miami offered the talented defensive lineman on July 11, and one UM analyst has already made a strong impression with Collins.
"It was actually exciting though ... I talked to coach Jason [Taylor], NFL Hall of Famer," Collins said. "It was really special to receive that offer and get to have a conversation with him."
"[Taylor and I] sat down on the phone, just getting to know each other, and talked a little football," Collins continued. "We [were] on a Zoom call earlier. We were just breaking down plays and things of that sort, me and him just building that relationship."
Along with Miami, some of the top college football programs in the nation have pursued Collins, including Texas A&M, Georgia and Alabama. The 6-foot-4, 255-pound defender recently attended a camp at Alabama on June 8.
Little preview from today🐘❤️ #RollTide @JtheNupe @EarlGill10 @RivalsCole @RivalsNick @samspiegs @BHoward_11 pic.twitter.com/VNSY9BjtCK
— Charleston (Charlie) Collins (@Charleston_C10) June 9, 2022
To improve as an all-around defensive lineman entering a pivotal junior season, Collins is working to improve his pass-rushing abilities.
"I'd like to practice on my pass-rushing ... I feel as if that's one of my strongest [skills], my edge-rushing, but I only finished the season with I think like nine or 10 sacks, and I know for a fact that I could do better," Collins said. "Run-stopping, that just comes to who wants it the most ... pass-rushing, you got to have technique."
Collins will look to improve his pass-rushing skills this offseason with Wilbur D. Mills offensive and defensive line coach Marcus Bolden.
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Luke Chaney is a contributing writer for Sports Illustrated-FanNation's AllHurricanes.com, covering recruiting and Miami Athletics. You can also find Luke on WVUM 90.5 FM as a play-by-play broadcaster. He is also the Sports Editor for The Miami Hurricane. Follow Luke on Twitter @luke_chaney4.