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2021 Lehigh Senior (FL) 4-star CB Tar’varish Dawson has become a top target at cornerback for the Miami Hurricanes this cycle, and UM was able to get the talented prospect on campus a few weeks back for their Junior Day event.
“The visit was great - it felt like home, being in Florida of course,” Dawson said. “It showed me they’re trying to bring the old Miami back.
“The coaches were basically teaching us about recruitment and how that goes, and then explaining what it will be like once we get on campus - you basically have to be on task with everything. Then they told us about Miami’s defensive schemes and a little about the offensive side too.”
Dawson attended the event with one of his coaches and some teammates, and spent most of his time speaking with cornerbacks coach Mike Rumph about how Miami plans to use him.
“I’ve been talking with coach Rumph for a while,” Dawson said. “He tells me I’ll fit into the defense with my speed, a corner that can play inside and outside. Miami plays fast and physical, they love DB’s that tackle. That’s part of my game too, but I’m also a finesse corner that likes picks a lot.”
So, although the visit did go well, Dawson left campus without committing; even though there was some talk that Dawson was close to giving a pledge to Miami on the trip, he denied that and says he’s always wanted to take his time with the process.
“It wasn’t like that, I was just telling them I wasn’t ready to commit yet, that I want to be patient with it,” Dawson said about commitment rumors.
The Canes have been after Dawson for close to a year now, as outside linebackers coach Jon Patke extended him an offer after watching him in a spring practice in May of 2019. With that in mind, Dawson says UM is certainly one of his top schools right now, and also detailed a family connection to a former Cane and NFL athlete.
“What really interests me is all the legends that have been there, there’s a lot of good players that have come out of Miami,” Dawson said. “Especially a player that I know, Phillip Buchanon, who came from the same city that I’m from. I call him my uncle, because him and my dad are really cool. [Buchanon] tells me about all the great things they did there and that I would fit right in.”
As for where he is at in the recruiting process in general, Dawson says the college attention has increased lately; Power 5 schools Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa State, Kansas, and Pitt have all offered in the past few weeks alone.
“I’m just now getting used to all the hype with the process,” Dawson said. “I hear from Maryland, UCF, and Louisville a lot, Bama has reached out. It’s been big lately. I’m going to think about putting out a top list in the spring.
“I’ll definitely be going to Miami again, then I’m going to go to Louisville, Maryland, and I’m going to Alabama. I’m working on setting up the dates.”
The 5-10 155 pound prospect has not only seen his stock rise on college boards lately, but also in recruiting circles; after being unranked in the 2021 class, just yesterday, Dawson received a 4-star ranking from 247Sports.
“I don’t really care about rankings, because I know I’ve been unranked since freshman year and I’ve been balling the past 3 years,” Dawson said. “It is nice to be recognized a little bit, but I just want to go to college and ball.”
With no current decision timetable, Dawson is simply going to focus on the schools that can best meet the certain criteria he’s looking for and work from there.
“I’m looking for a school that’s not all about football, that’s about academics too so I can get a good degree if I don’t go three years and out,” Dawson said. “And a school that’s basically family.”
For his Lehigh Senior team, Dawson operates as a swiss army knife that is moved all over the field, playing wildcat quarterback, running back, receiver, cornerback, and safety. On offense as a junior last season, he recorded 206 rushing yards and 3 TD’s, plus 19 catches for 293 yards and 3 TD’s through the air, along with a kick return TD as well; on defense, Dawson had 10 tackles, 3 INT’s, 2 PBU’s, 1 FF, 1 FR, and a blocked kick.
“I think I did great, my best season,” Dawson said. “That’s when I really opened up and started getting all of these offers. We lost first round of the playoffs, though. We could’ve done better.”
Over the offseason, Dawson has an interesting strategy for what he will work on to improve his game as a defensive back.
“I want to focus on receiver a little bit,” Dawson said. “Because when you understand receiver, you’re a better DB, you know what a receiver does.”
“The visit was great - it felt like home, being in Florida of course,” Dawson said. “It showed me they’re trying to bring the old Miami back.
“The coaches were basically teaching us about recruitment and how that goes, and then explaining what it will be like once we get on campus - you basically have to be on task with everything. Then they told us about Miami’s defensive schemes and a little about the offensive side too.”
Dawson attended the event with one of his coaches and some teammates, and spent most of his time speaking with cornerbacks coach Mike Rumph about how Miami plans to use him.
“I’ve been talking with coach Rumph for a while,” Dawson said. “He tells me I’ll fit into the defense with my speed, a corner that can play inside and outside. Miami plays fast and physical, they love DB’s that tackle. That’s part of my game too, but I’m also a finesse corner that likes picks a lot.”
So, although the visit did go well, Dawson left campus without committing; even though there was some talk that Dawson was close to giving a pledge to Miami on the trip, he denied that and says he’s always wanted to take his time with the process.
“It wasn’t like that, I was just telling them I wasn’t ready to commit yet, that I want to be patient with it,” Dawson said about commitment rumors.
The Canes have been after Dawson for close to a year now, as outside linebackers coach Jon Patke extended him an offer after watching him in a spring practice in May of 2019. With that in mind, Dawson says UM is certainly one of his top schools right now, and also detailed a family connection to a former Cane and NFL athlete.
“What really interests me is all the legends that have been there, there’s a lot of good players that have come out of Miami,” Dawson said. “Especially a player that I know, Phillip Buchanon, who came from the same city that I’m from. I call him my uncle, because him and my dad are really cool. [Buchanon] tells me about all the great things they did there and that I would fit right in.”
As for where he is at in the recruiting process in general, Dawson says the college attention has increased lately; Power 5 schools Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa State, Kansas, and Pitt have all offered in the past few weeks alone.
“I’m just now getting used to all the hype with the process,” Dawson said. “I hear from Maryland, UCF, and Louisville a lot, Bama has reached out. It’s been big lately. I’m going to think about putting out a top list in the spring.
“I’ll definitely be going to Miami again, then I’m going to go to Louisville, Maryland, and I’m going to Alabama. I’m working on setting up the dates.”
The 5-10 155 pound prospect has not only seen his stock rise on college boards lately, but also in recruiting circles; after being unranked in the 2021 class, just yesterday, Dawson received a 4-star ranking from 247Sports.
“I don’t really care about rankings, because I know I’ve been unranked since freshman year and I’ve been balling the past 3 years,” Dawson said. “It is nice to be recognized a little bit, but I just want to go to college and ball.”
With no current decision timetable, Dawson is simply going to focus on the schools that can best meet the certain criteria he’s looking for and work from there.
“I’m looking for a school that’s not all about football, that’s about academics too so I can get a good degree if I don’t go three years and out,” Dawson said. “And a school that’s basically family.”
For his Lehigh Senior team, Dawson operates as a swiss army knife that is moved all over the field, playing wildcat quarterback, running back, receiver, cornerback, and safety. On offense as a junior last season, he recorded 206 rushing yards and 3 TD’s, plus 19 catches for 293 yards and 3 TD’s through the air, along with a kick return TD as well; on defense, Dawson had 10 tackles, 3 INT’s, 2 PBU’s, 1 FF, 1 FR, and a blocked kick.
“I think I did great, my best season,” Dawson said. “That’s when I really opened up and started getting all of these offers. We lost first round of the playoffs, though. We could’ve done better.”
Over the offseason, Dawson has an interesting strategy for what he will work on to improve his game as a defensive back.
“I want to focus on receiver a little bit,” Dawson said. “Because when you understand receiver, you’re a better DB, you know what a receiver does.”
