Canes RB Dallas dreams of NFL Draft phone call
Miami star DeeJay Dallas declared early for the NFL Draft before the coronavirus took hold of the world. Now he and his fiance are raising their 9-month-old son and staying optimistic about the days to come.
Demetrius Dallas Jr. began calling himself “DJ’’ in his third grade gifted program in Brunswick, Georgia.
By fourth grade, said his mother, Manyonna Mountain, Demetrius began writing “DeeJay’’ on his school papers — and no one was going to tell this headstrong little guy otherwise.
Thus, Demetrius became DeeJay and the inquisitive, bustling little leader, who walked at 71⁄ months and
2 was running laps around a gymnastics studio by 2, grew into an elite 5-10, 217-pound equally driven football player who could pretty much do it all at the University of Miami.
Now, Dallas, a junior running back who declared for the NFL Draft in December with no warning that a virus called COVID-19 would change the world in unimaginable ways, is raising his 9-month-old son DeeJay with his fiance and navigating this unpredictable landscape with the same unabashed optimism he demonstrated amid plenty of hard times last season.
“I was raised to be built for this stuff,’’ Dallas told the Miami Herald late last week in a phone interview. “Whatever adversity comes, I’ll be alright.”
Dallas is the ever-upbeat, hard-working fan-favorite
who insisted his sophomore year that the Hurricanes were “built to crush dreams,’’ when ultimately it was their own dreams that were crushed with a
7-6 record in 2018, followed by 6-7 in 2019.
He is one of the fortunate draft-eligible college players who had a chance to perform at the NFL Scouting Combine in late February. The NFL also invited cornerback Trajan Bandy, receiver Jeff Thomas and defensive end Jonathan Garvin — all draft-bound UM underclassmen — as well as senior teammates Shaq Quarterman (linebacker), Trevon Hill (defensive end), K.J. Osborn (receiver) and Michael Pinckney (linebacker).
None of them are projected as first-rounders April 23, when the draft begins.
Day Two, on April 24, is perhaps when one or two Canes could be selected during a made-for-TV format that was instituted after the coronavirus pandemic precipitated the cancelation of the originally scheduled extravaganza in Las Vegas. Most of the former Hurricanes, including Dallas, are projected to be picked in the fourth-through-seventh rounds on Day Three, when the draft concludes April
25.
“The third day of the draft covers a plethora of ground,’’ said Dallas, who has primarily been working out on his own. “But you never know. Teams have guys on their board, and then those guys are gone and everything shifts. My goal is just to get drafted, honestly.
“You always want to get off the board as soon as possible, but for me, the third, fourth, fifth rounds would suffice. I know how the league is and I know what the league is about.’’
GEORGIA GEM
Dallas came to the Hurricanes in 2017 as a consensus four-star prospect out of Glynn Academy in Georgia, where he played quarterback, receiver, running back, defensive back and return specialist. He was ranked the nation’s No. 15 “athlete’’ by rivals.com, and No. 196 overall, regardless of position, and chose UM among offers from Georgia, Florida, Florida State, Alabama and
Auburn. He began his freshman UM season as a receiver, then was switched to running back before the season ended.
In 2019, his first season as the featured back after Travis Homer left for the NFL, Dallas led the Hurricanes in rushing with 693 yards and eight touchdowns on 115 carries for a strong 6-yards-per-carry average — and that was in the 10 games before he dislocated his left elbow in a gruesome injury on Nov. 23 against FIU.
He added 14 catches for 140 yards and two touchdowns for the season, ranking second on the team with 846 all-purpose yards.
His career rushing numbers: 1,527 yards and 17 touchdowns on 265 carries for a 5.8-yards-per-carry average. Dallas also was used as a wildcat quarterback, excelled returning kicks and punts in 2018 and is known for his strong blocking in the receiving game.
Dallas ran a 4.58-second 40-yard dash at the combine in Indianapolis, the 15th best time of 28 running backs. He was eighth in the three-cone drill (7.18 seconds) and 11th in the 20-yard shuttle (4.32). NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah said his 40 was “plenty good enough’’ because of his on-field finesse and grit.
‘VISION, BALANCE, POWER’
“The best pass-protecting back in the draft class in my opinion,’’ Jeremiah said during his NFL Combine analysis. “His game is about vision, balance and power between the tackles. And then again, when you get in passing situations, [he’s a] 217-pound back that’s aware and can really, really pass protect.
“You talk about short yardage, this dude is a bulldog in short yardage.”
Now fully healed, Dallas initially trained in Arizona beginning in January until recently, when he and Yasmin and the baby drove to Tallahassee to isolate in a separate part of the family home of former UM receivers coach/current Florida State receivers coach Ron Dugans, Yasmin’s father.
They’ll return to Brunswick to rejoin Dallas’ mother — who teaches Pre-K for Glynn County Schools — Dallas’ 10-year-old twin sisters, his 16-year-old brother and his stepfather Alan, along with his extended family, later this month for the draft.
WATCHING, WAITING
“I’ll be at home, just watching and waiting on the call,’’ Dallas said. “I was already planning on sitting at home. For the guys who were trying to go to Vegas it’s probably different. I know it’s going to be weird, real weird, but for me I feel like not much has changed.’’
Dallas’ agent, Miamibased lawyer Eloy Vazquez Jr. of Elite Athlete Management, believes Dallas “is the most versatile running back in this draft class.’’
“He can do it all,’’ Vazquez said, “from special teams to running back to splitting out wide as a receiver. And outside of football he’s just a great kid.”
Despite being unable to perform again in what was to be UM’s Pro Day combine on campus on Wednesday, April 1, Dallas said he has spoken with representatives from all 32 NFL teams. “I’ve been on the phone with them for many weeks now, back and forth. “We’ve been doing facetime and phone calls. I had private meetings but they ended up getting canceled.
“Wherever I go I feel like I’ll be fine. Shoot, I’m down for anywhere — Atlanta, Miami, Tampa Bay, Baltimore to Cali. I don’t care.”
LIKE FATHER LIKE SON
Yasmin Dugans, who is launching a hair-extension service, took the year off from her studies at FIU to be with baby DeeJay. She said the baby is called by his middle name Nova,
“but answers to both.’’ The baby, she said, is so much like his dad it’s almost eerie. “He began walking at 7 months,’’ Yasmin said. “I’ve rarely heard of that in my life. He has six teeth and has the same gap between his two front teeth as DeeJay. He’s already talking. It’s crazy.’’
“The other day we heard him say, ‘Hey, Aisha!” to one of my fourth-grade daughters,’’ Dallas’ mother said. “DeeJay was very, very busy as a baby. This baby is just like him.’’
Dallas said his son has given him added purpose and perspective, and made it a bit easier to make the jump, even though he said UM coach Manny Diaz wanted him to stay.
“He didn’t want to see me go,’’ Dallas said. “But he said he would support me with whatever I decided. We had plenty of meetings, probably five or six with my coaches to see what’s in store for next year. I’m still in a group chat with the running backs and keep in touch with UM players.
“Honestly, I don’t know what’s in store for them next season. But if we stay committed to being great and to sticking through hard times and doing the little things right, we’ll be OK. Hopefully we get a complete buy-in and make a run for the national championship.”
Dallas, who is represented on the marketing side by former UM receiver Ahmmon Richards’ company Lgndary Sports, said he will always show loyalty to Hurricanes fans because “the community of Miami and Coral Gables were very loyal to me from Day One.’’
“I’m tied to Miami forever because of the relationships I’ve built and people who have cared for me,” he said.
Dallas majored in human and social development and said he only has about six credits left to complete and will eventually return to UM to get his degree.
For now, it’s countdown to draft day.
“Some nights I dream of getting that phone call,’’ Dallas said. “Some nights it keeps me up. When it happens it will be one of the highlights of my life. I’m ready to go to work.’’