Top national defensive backs JD Coffey and Ishmael Ibraheem have said for a while that they wanted to play together at the next level. On Monday, the talented tandem became men of their word.
Coffey and Ibraheem announced on Twitter moments ago that they have both given verbal commitments to the Texas Longhorns, culminating a plan that’s been months in the making.
For Coffey, a Rivals250 safety out of Kennedale, it was a combination of factors that led him to choose Texas.
“It feels great. I just want to get there and get started, talk to the coaches and get home,” Coffey said. “I think it was my relationship with them, and just the environment. Austin has so many opportunities outside of football. Inside football, I think they produce DBs just as well as anybody else. So just staying home and all of that is really what made me choose them.”
Ibraheem, a Rivals250 corner out of Dallas Kimball, said he feels he and Coffey and play a part in continuing UT’s rich tradition of producing talented defensive backs.
“Just looking at it, me and JD want to go in there, with them being DBU for a long time, we want to bring that back and get the numbers up,” Ibraheem said.
Coffey, a 6-1, 180-pounder, is a four-star prospect who checks in at No. 112 on the Rivals250.
“Coffey is an impactful safety that covers a ton of ground and patrols the back end of his team's defense with authority,” said Rivals.com recruiting analyst Sam Spiegelman. “He's a natural ballhawk with an innate feel for the game and finds himself in the right position more often than not. He naturally gravitates toward the football and brings a vast skill-set to the position.
“While Coffey looks thin in stature, he has a case as the most physical safety in the Lone Star State for 2021. He tests receivers trying to catch passes in the middle of the field or down the seams with serious pops at the back end of plays. He's excellent at timing those big hits, too. That physicality shows in the run game as well.”
The 6-1, 165-pound Ibraheem is a unique cornerback prospects with his length and physical style of play. Like Coffey, he’s a four-star prospect and Ibraheem comes in at No. 216 on the Rivals250.
“Ibraheem is long and thin with an impressive wingspan. He has continued to grow and improve with hip flexion and as of last fall, was able to naturally turn and run upfield with faster and taller wide receivers,” Spiegelman said. “Ibraheem has quick feet and has become truly able to shadow pass-catchers, especially outside the numbers as they attempt to go downfield.
“What stands out is Ibraheem's physicality for the cornerback position. He does not hesitate to go head-to-head with receivers and does not shy away from being physical and involving himself in defending against the run. Often, Ibraheem battles with receivers attempting to block him and wins those 1-on-1s and makes his way to stop the ball-carrier.”
The two new commitments put Texas at 13 pledges in the 2021 class. Coffey and Ibraheem are the Longhorns’ first two pure defensive back commitments (Billy Bowman could wind up in the secondary as well) and are big recruiting wins for Chris Ash and Jay Valai, respectively. Coffey chose Texas over a final grouping of UT, LSU, ashington and Oregon. Ibraheem chose the Longhorns over the likes of Georgia, Alabama, LSU and Michigan.
OB will have more from the Horns' two newest commitments in Tuesday's 3-2-1 column.
