2021 commit: ‘I love UM’
Miami Palmetto senior DT Collins sets record straight
MIAMI — Miami Palmetto defensive tackle Savion Collins has been committed to the Miami Hurricanes’ 2021 recruiting class for more than two years.
Pledging in September 2018, as a sophomore at Southwest Miami, he’s the second-longest committed prospect in the class, behind Miami Central offensive guard Laurence Seymore (March 2018).
Over those two years, however, there have been numerous rumors that his head was elsewhere and that he was on the verge of flipping on his commitment.
“For me, that’s just not the case,” Collins told the South Florida Sun Sentinel after his Panthers’ 28-8 preseason win over Miami Booker T. Washington on Friday afternoon at
Tropical Park. “I said in multiple interviews: I don’t hate UM. I love UM. It’s just I kept my options open to see where I can go, where I can progress. Now, I love being home.
“I can say something about UM, and if it’s not even in a negative way, if it’s just neutral, people try to twist it.”
With fellow Palmetto defensive tackle Leonard Taylor, a five-star recruit, and three-star wide receiver Brashard Smith joining him in Miami’s 2021 class over the summer, would Collins now say he’s 100% solid with his commitment?
“Yeah, you can say that,” he said, adding talks with other schools have cooled off. “It’s mainly just me and Miami right now.”
Collins was ecstatic when he found out Taylor was committing to the Hurricanes.
“I was actually surprised because he was telling me he was thinking about Florida and all this other stuff,” Collins said. “At the end of the day, Miami’s our home. We got to represent the crib.
“I think it was just a timing. Everything [was] settling in, we were trying to decide where we want to go, where we want to have our legacy. Only real way to leave it is where we grew up.”
Collins said of his relationship with Taylor: “That’s like my brother. We grew up together. I go where he goes. He goes where I go. We’re together. That’s just how it is.”
He’s excited about what the two of them can do together at UM.
“That’s a force to be reckoned with,” Collins said. “That’s something different. It’s going to shock the world, I’m telling you.”
With two Florida Gators commits on his team, cornerback Jason Marshall and safety Corey Collier, Collins says the three Miami-committed players are still working on them.
“We’re trying to flip Jason and Corey,” Collins said. “We try. We slip in some stuff sometimes. It is what it is.”
Collins said he’s 6 foot 4 and 315 pounds but would like to slim down a bit before college. He’ll also be playing right guard on the Palmetto offensive line this season. In Friday’s preseason game, he mostly played there and only played two series on defense, but Palmetto coach Mike Manasco said he wants Collins playing both all season. Manasco will ease Collins back at defensive tackle as he gets into good-enough shape to handle snaps on both sides of the ball.
Collins has been committed to Miami so long that former defensive line coach Jess Simpson was there in 2018 before going back to the Atlanta Falcons. Since, it has been Todd Stroud, whom Collins says he has “good conversations” with.
“Coach Manny [Diaz] knows what he does,” Collins said. “He chooses the best people that he feels is best qualified for that position. He feels that coach Stroud is the best person, I’m going to go with coach Stroud. I’m going to put my trust in him, and hopefully, he can put his trust in me.”