It’s rare to see a four-year starter at Miami Central, the most dominant program in the state of Florida. But it was impossible for the coaches to keep Miami commit Amari Wallace off the field. The 5’10, 175 pound safety, who ranks as a four-star on the 247 Composite, joined CanesInSight to discuss his decision to commit to the Hurricanes, his game and his recruiting pitch to undecided recruits:
On why he committed to Miami: Because of what I see. There's nothing like home. The communication that me, my mom, my dad, the coaching staff have with Miami, it's just unbelievable. I've been a fan for Miami for a few years.
Why not stay home? I stayed home because I want my mom, my dad, my brothers, aunties, cousins, everybody watching me at the University of Miami. Watch me ball out at Hard Rock Stadium.
On his relationship with Miami’s staff: I felt comfortable with them because they've been recruiting me since I was in the 10th grade. The reason why I love the coaches so much is because they know how to keep in touch with you. They know how to pop up on you. They came to the school a couple of times and saw me.
I like the defensive scheme. Me and Coach Guidry, we've been talking about more than football, talking about life. Coach Cristobal, he’s just a real person. He keeps it real with you no matter what.
On his game: It doesn’t matter if it's 7-on-7, tackle football, I always try to give the game 110%. It could be a big game, or it could be a little game. I always try to stay focused and tuned in to the game.
On players he models his game after: Ed Reed and Kam Kinchens, because they weren’t the biggest and they rose to be the strongest. It’s what they had inside. They had heart. No matter what, they go fight. Those are two I looked up to, and both of them went to Miami. They had good ball skills, they knew how to tackle, they knew how to hit, and they knew how to cover.
On his relationship with Kam Kinchens, who also came through Coach Duasso’s 7on7 program: Kam came to one of the 7on7s at Raw. We were talking and he was asking me about the recruitment. We were just talking just about football, how to cover a guy, how to read a guy’s hip. He was telling me how to catch more picks.
On his goals for Miami Central: Our team is a family. We all mess with each other. It's almost like we’re brothers. I see them at 7 o'clock in the morning. I leave with them at 7 o'clock at night. So I'm with them all day. My goal for this season is to try to get my team back to a National and State Championship.
On the advice he gets from Central alums Rueben Bain, Wesley Bissainthe and UM staffer Sabbath Joseph: All those guys just tell me it's different at the next level. You’ve got to come in with the mentality of being a dog. You’ve got to be 10 toes down. Whatever they give you, just work and everything will pay off at the end.
On Central head coach Jube Joseph: Jube had me when I was 14, playing JV. I never played a JV game, but I practiced for JV for two weeks. He pulled me out the gate. He told me to come guard two of his best players, guarded them, and Jube’s been with me ever since. He always believed in me, and he always had his trust inside me.
I started the Bishop Gorman game and guarded Zachariah Branch. That was my first start, in ninth grade. A 14-year-old starting at Miami Central High School.
On his relationship with RAW Miami teammate and fellow UM commit Drake Stubbs: I was talking to Drake when he was committed to USC, and I was telling him, “You’re not going to find nowhere like Miami.” And then I told him just like this: “Tell me what coach you know who throws a barbecue at his own house, a house where he lays his head at, a house where him, his wife, his kids are living there.” I’ve never seen that in my life. And I can tell any recruit, that’s big and that's real because that man lives there and you don't know what type of people you bring into your environment. For him to bring the recruits to his house, that showed his love for the University of Miami.
On his message to Miami fans: When I come in, I'm going to give them my all. When I come in, I'm going to be a dog. And what you see on my high school film, you’re going to see a lot more when I come to the University of Miami.
