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2021 Bishop Verot (FL) ATH Malik Curtis committed to the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday afternoon.
The 5-11 160 pounder is currently a consensus 3-star prospect in the national rankings. According to the 247Sports Composite Ranking, Curtis is the #906 player nationally in 2021, the #72 ATH in the country, and the #130 player in the Sunshine State. His commitment moved UM’s class ranking on 247Sports up to #7 in the nation and to #10 on Rivals.
The Player
Curtis has been a lightly-recruited prospect to this point, even after he landed his first offer from the Hurricanes back in January. Since then, Curtis’ recruitment has remained quiet, as he had not visited UM nor was he considered a top target that Miami was chasing, so his commitment seemed to come out of nowhere. He ultimately chose the Canes over other bids from Boston College, Georgia Southern, and Western Kentucky.
Curtis made first team All-Area in 2019 after starring all over the field for the Vikings: he registered 34 catches for 680 yards and 8 TD catches, plus 55 rushing yards, on offense; 15 tackles and 3 PBU’s on defense; and a whopping 4 punt return TD’s and 1 kick return TD on special teams.
While he’s listed as an athlete, UM sees Curtis’ future to be on defense as a corner. A big concern of the staff’s from last season was the lack of speed in the secondary, and they’ve certainly helped to address that by adding Curtis, who has clocked a 11.13 in the 100 meter in the past. The first thing that stands out to me about Curtis on film is his impressive change of direction skills, as he is able to cut on a dime and makes a seamless transition in finding open space. Demonstrates the ability to high-point the ball and attack the rock as a receiver, something that could translate well to playing corner. Shows great 0 to 60 acceleration, which allows for striking recovery speed on defense in chasing down ballcarriers.
Versatile athlete that is also threat as a returner, and is explosive with the ball in his hands; simply looks to be moving at another speed than others on the field. Terrific vision and sets up blocks well. Average technique as a tackler and could be a liability in the run game at this point. Has a slight frame, and needs to add a lot of weight to be able to hold up consistently at the next level, although he sports great length. Curtis is much more polished as a receiver at this point and his corner technique needs development, but based on his film, he oozes athletic potential. He’s going to have an interesting learning curve at the next level.
The Class
Curtis becomes the 12th commitment and 2nd cornerback in the 2021 class, joining Miami Northwestern (FL) 3-star CB Tim Burns. With UM likely looking to take two or three CB’s this cycle depending on how the rest of the class shakes out, Miami is certainly going to continue recruiting the position.
Miami Palmetto (FL) 5-star Jason Marshall has long been UM’s top target at corner for over two years now and has been a frequent visitor to campus in that time. Marshall put the Canes in his top 7 back in January, and followed that up with a trip to Coral Gables for UM’s junior day a few weeks later, which ended up being huge with the campus shutdowns soon to follow; UF has been the only other program to get a visit in 2020. Most see the Gators as having the early edge for Marshall, and the Canes still have plenty of time to make up ground with Marshall planning to decide in either December or at the UA Game in January; however, Marshall is planning on putting out his top 3 soon, so Miami is going to have to fight with schools like FSU, Clemson, UGA, LSU, and Alabama to stay alive here.
Another 5-star high on UM’s board that they continue to keep in touch with is Pinson Valley (AL) Ga’Quincy McKinstry. An out-of-state prospect that everybody wants that’s also never made a visit to UM certainly qualifies as a longshot, but Miami will make sure to cover their bases here and shoot their shot as McKinstry has left open the possibility of visiting UM when the quarantine is over.
A fast-riser on the corner board has been Lehigh Senior (FL) 3-star Tar’varish Dawson, who went from unknown recruit to borderline 4-star prospect over the past few months. Miami was one of his first offers, and Dawson has long had an affinity for the Canes, partly because of his dad’s close relationship to Phillip Buchanon. Dawson visited UM for their junior day event in January, and recently named UM to his top 6 along with Auburn, Minnesota, Louisville, South Carolina, and UCF. Miami seems to be in a good spot here right now.
Two local corners Miami has recruited through the quarantine include University School (FL) 3-star Ricardo Hallman and McArthur (FL) 3-star Kevin Knowles. Knowles visited UM for their junior day event in January and told CIS last month that he talks to Assistant Director of Recruiting DeMarcus Van Dyke every day, and is in regular contact with both Manny Diaz and Mike Rumph, while Hallman just spoke to Rumph last night. The Canes have also been keeping in contact with Gaither (FL) 3-star Jordan Young as well, who visited for Paradise Camp last summer. Camden (NJ) 4-star Darian Chestnut and IMG Academy (FL) 4-star Markevious Brown are other corners that UM has kept tabs on over the past few months.
Miami has been putting out tons of new offers across the board this spring, and that has carried over to the corner position: Lehigh Senior (FL) 4-star Omarion Cooper, Bloomingdale (FL) 4-star Philip Riley, Madison Prep Academy (LA) 3-star Tyrell Raby, and Jensen Beach (FL) 3-star Da’Quan Gonzales have all received recent bids from UM, but it’s unknown just where they sit on Miami’s board as of now.
The Team
The position took a big hit when Trajan Bandy left school early for the NFL, as he had been UM’s most consistent corner the past two seasons. The other concerning aspect of that move is that Miami simply doesn’t have a lot of numbers at the position. The good news is all four returnees in Al Blades, DJ Ivey, Christian Williams, and Te’Cory Couch saw playing time in 2019, and all four were 4-star talents. Freshmen Isaiah Dunson and Marcus Clarke will arrive in fall to provide competition for them.
All of those players are projected to return when Curtis hits campus in 2021, but, without any real solid or proven corner rotation at the moment, Curtis could potentially be coming into an ideal situation for early playing time. However, he is a bit like Clarke from last cycle in that most of his tape is at receiver/returner and Curtis is more of a developmental corner in that aspect. He also needs to add a ton of weight to hold up at the college level, so a redshirt is his likely path as a freshman. He does add much-needed speed to the group, though, so he could become a vital part of the rotation as a redshirt freshman and beyond if he progresses properly.
The 5-11 160 pounder is currently a consensus 3-star prospect in the national rankings. According to the 247Sports Composite Ranking, Curtis is the #906 player nationally in 2021, the #72 ATH in the country, and the #130 player in the Sunshine State. His commitment moved UM’s class ranking on 247Sports up to #7 in the nation and to #10 on Rivals.
The Player
Curtis has been a lightly-recruited prospect to this point, even after he landed his first offer from the Hurricanes back in January. Since then, Curtis’ recruitment has remained quiet, as he had not visited UM nor was he considered a top target that Miami was chasing, so his commitment seemed to come out of nowhere. He ultimately chose the Canes over other bids from Boston College, Georgia Southern, and Western Kentucky.
Curtis made first team All-Area in 2019 after starring all over the field for the Vikings: he registered 34 catches for 680 yards and 8 TD catches, plus 55 rushing yards, on offense; 15 tackles and 3 PBU’s on defense; and a whopping 4 punt return TD’s and 1 kick return TD on special teams.
While he’s listed as an athlete, UM sees Curtis’ future to be on defense as a corner. A big concern of the staff’s from last season was the lack of speed in the secondary, and they’ve certainly helped to address that by adding Curtis, who has clocked a 11.13 in the 100 meter in the past. The first thing that stands out to me about Curtis on film is his impressive change of direction skills, as he is able to cut on a dime and makes a seamless transition in finding open space. Demonstrates the ability to high-point the ball and attack the rock as a receiver, something that could translate well to playing corner. Shows great 0 to 60 acceleration, which allows for striking recovery speed on defense in chasing down ballcarriers.
Versatile athlete that is also threat as a returner, and is explosive with the ball in his hands; simply looks to be moving at another speed than others on the field. Terrific vision and sets up blocks well. Average technique as a tackler and could be a liability in the run game at this point. Has a slight frame, and needs to add a lot of weight to be able to hold up consistently at the next level, although he sports great length. Curtis is much more polished as a receiver at this point and his corner technique needs development, but based on his film, he oozes athletic potential. He’s going to have an interesting learning curve at the next level.
The Class
Curtis becomes the 12th commitment and 2nd cornerback in the 2021 class, joining Miami Northwestern (FL) 3-star CB Tim Burns. With UM likely looking to take two or three CB’s this cycle depending on how the rest of the class shakes out, Miami is certainly going to continue recruiting the position.
Miami Palmetto (FL) 5-star Jason Marshall has long been UM’s top target at corner for over two years now and has been a frequent visitor to campus in that time. Marshall put the Canes in his top 7 back in January, and followed that up with a trip to Coral Gables for UM’s junior day a few weeks later, which ended up being huge with the campus shutdowns soon to follow; UF has been the only other program to get a visit in 2020. Most see the Gators as having the early edge for Marshall, and the Canes still have plenty of time to make up ground with Marshall planning to decide in either December or at the UA Game in January; however, Marshall is planning on putting out his top 3 soon, so Miami is going to have to fight with schools like FSU, Clemson, UGA, LSU, and Alabama to stay alive here.
Another 5-star high on UM’s board that they continue to keep in touch with is Pinson Valley (AL) Ga’Quincy McKinstry. An out-of-state prospect that everybody wants that’s also never made a visit to UM certainly qualifies as a longshot, but Miami will make sure to cover their bases here and shoot their shot as McKinstry has left open the possibility of visiting UM when the quarantine is over.
A fast-riser on the corner board has been Lehigh Senior (FL) 3-star Tar’varish Dawson, who went from unknown recruit to borderline 4-star prospect over the past few months. Miami was one of his first offers, and Dawson has long had an affinity for the Canes, partly because of his dad’s close relationship to Phillip Buchanon. Dawson visited UM for their junior day event in January, and recently named UM to his top 6 along with Auburn, Minnesota, Louisville, South Carolina, and UCF. Miami seems to be in a good spot here right now.
Two local corners Miami has recruited through the quarantine include University School (FL) 3-star Ricardo Hallman and McArthur (FL) 3-star Kevin Knowles. Knowles visited UM for their junior day event in January and told CIS last month that he talks to Assistant Director of Recruiting DeMarcus Van Dyke every day, and is in regular contact with both Manny Diaz and Mike Rumph, while Hallman just spoke to Rumph last night. The Canes have also been keeping in contact with Gaither (FL) 3-star Jordan Young as well, who visited for Paradise Camp last summer. Camden (NJ) 4-star Darian Chestnut and IMG Academy (FL) 4-star Markevious Brown are other corners that UM has kept tabs on over the past few months.
Miami has been putting out tons of new offers across the board this spring, and that has carried over to the corner position: Lehigh Senior (FL) 4-star Omarion Cooper, Bloomingdale (FL) 4-star Philip Riley, Madison Prep Academy (LA) 3-star Tyrell Raby, and Jensen Beach (FL) 3-star Da’Quan Gonzales have all received recent bids from UM, but it’s unknown just where they sit on Miami’s board as of now.
The Team
The position took a big hit when Trajan Bandy left school early for the NFL, as he had been UM’s most consistent corner the past two seasons. The other concerning aspect of that move is that Miami simply doesn’t have a lot of numbers at the position. The good news is all four returnees in Al Blades, DJ Ivey, Christian Williams, and Te’Cory Couch saw playing time in 2019, and all four were 4-star talents. Freshmen Isaiah Dunson and Marcus Clarke will arrive in fall to provide competition for them.
All of those players are projected to return when Curtis hits campus in 2021, but, without any real solid or proven corner rotation at the moment, Curtis could potentially be coming into an ideal situation for early playing time. However, he is a bit like Clarke from last cycle in that most of his tape is at receiver/returner and Curtis is more of a developmental corner in that aspect. He also needs to add a ton of weight to hold up at the college level, so a redshirt is his likely path as a freshman. He does add much-needed speed to the group, though, so he could become a vital part of the rotation as a redshirt freshman and beyond if he progresses properly.
