UW's Jonah Coleman Is Hard Man to Please, Hard to Bring Down

Ever the perfectionist, he wasn't satisfied with his effort against USC.

UW running back Jonah Coleman rushes for a score as USC corner John Humphrey (19) and LB Easton Mascarenas-Arnold (4) give chase. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

While USC certainly would be hard-pressed to say it contained him, Jonah Coleman insisted the University of Washington football team's 26-21 victory over the Trojans last weekend simply wasn't one of his more memorable outings.

Dissecting his performance, the 5-foot-9, 229-pound junior running back shared how he made a couple of bad reads in picking out holes to run through and wasn't nearly as sharp as he could have been in packing the football.

"I don't feel it was one of my better games," Coleman said.

Oh.

The Arizona transfer can be his own worst critic if he wants to, however Coleman will have to look long and around Seattle to find anyone who necessarily agrees with him.

This is a guy who snapped off 19- and 15-yard touchdown runs while piling up 104 yards rushing on a season-high 23 carries against those Men of Troy -- surpassing 100 yards for the fifth time in four outings this season.

Still, that wasn' t nearly enough to satisfy him.

"I'm always going to be hard on myself, no matter how good of a game I've had," Coleman explained. "There's always something I wish I could have done different in running the ball. I'm not perfect, it's a hard sport. You've got to make a decision before your eye blinks."

JONAH COLEMAN FILE
Weber State	16 carrries, 127 yards, 3 TDs
Eastern Michigan	11-104-0
Washington State	14-75-0
Northwestern	15-67-1
Rutgers	16-148-0
Michigan	18-80-1
Iowa	9-80-0
Indiana	19-104-0
USC	23-104-2
Season Total	141-889-7

While all of that is well and good to appease the competitor in him, Coleman enters Saturday night's game at Penn State ranked 17th in the nation in rushing yards, sitting just 111 from breaking the 1,000-yard barrier while averaging a bare yard shy of 100 per game.

Only seven players nationwide have exceeded that number so far, topped by Boise State's Ashton Jeanty, who has run 190 times for 1,525 yards and 20 touchdowns, after getting nearly 50 more carries than Coleman.

The Husky ball-carrier also is notably elusive, currently standing fourth in the NCAA with 32 rushes of 10 yards or more, topped by his 64-yard scamper against Eastern Michigan and a 46-yard dash against Indiana.

The key to success for Coleman remains keeping himself healthy. He might be the hardest-running back in several seasons for the Huskies, more than willing to take a pounding. There's a lot of miles -- make that yards -- on him so far.

He emerged from Lincoln High School in Stockton, California, after rushing 334 times for 3,319 yards and 58 touchdowns over 31 games.

Jonah Coleman celebrates a touchdown run against Weber State. / Skylar Lin Visuals

In two seasons at Arizona, he ran 203 times for 1,234 yards and and 9 scores, picking up 53 and 44 yards in two outings against the Huskies.

Add in his UW yardage, and this hard-working player has the following football odometer in his career at two levels: 678 carries for 5,442 yards.

That's a lot of wear and tear, to the point Jedd Fisch's coaching staff has tried to limit Coleman to 14-15 carries per game and pull him out of games that have gotten out of hand, such as the road outing at Iowa in which he drew just 9 carries.

Huskies running back Jonah Coleman gets tackled by Iowa defensive lineman Deontae Craig in their game in Iowa City. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Whereas he was critical of his running, Coleman felt he was in top physical shape to get the job done against the Trojans, spending much of the week working in the weight room, sitting in hot and cold tubs, and getting acupuncture treatments.

"I feel good," he said this week. "I was prepared for the moment. I do a good job of taking care of my body."

With that in mind, Coleman likely will be faced with the decision of whether to return to the UW in 2025 or head directly to the NFL. Early indications are the pros hold him in high favor, plus there's the thought he better play at the next level while his body permits him to do so.

"Right now, I'm just focused on playing Penn State," he said, dismissing a question about whether he has another Husky season in him or not.

Heading back East, Coleman will try to find ways to punish the Nittany Lions even if he can't make himself totally happy while doing it.

For the latest UW football and basketball news, go to si.com/college/washington