CaneSport’s Inside the Lines with Miami Hurricanes WR Jacolby George

Miami Hurricanes WR Jacolby George wants to put his past mistakes where they belong … in the past. He’s struggled with some issues off the field and also on it, including a handful of silly penalties last year. At the same time he showed what he’s capable of when he’s got everything going in the right direction – fans saw a glimpse of that with his 57 catches and 864 yards last year.

And you also can get a glimpse of it in QB Cam Ward raving about George late this summer. “The communication standpoint I have with Jacolby George…. I feel is the best on the team because JG is going to be the reason we can be a top offense in the country,” Ward said. “I think he’s going to be the focal point of that because of what he can do after the catch. He’s the guy I can throw a three-yard slant to and he can (score), just boosted my stats. Jacolby George knows he’s that guy and I’m looking for him to bring it every game.”

INSIDE THE LINES SERIES: C Zach Carpenter … QB Emory Williams

Ward said that knowing, of course, that 1,000-yard receiver Xavier Restrepo is also back in the offensive arsenal, and the team’s added top Houston WR Sam Brown out of the portal.

So yes, very high praise indeed.

For his part, George just wants to fulfill his vast potential.

“I feel like this year is the year for everything to all come together, for everybody to see what I’ve been working for and this team’s been working for,” George said. “It’s all going to show this year.”

George says he’s bonded well with Ward and can’t wait to see what the QB can achieve at Miami.

“Me and Cam have gotten close,” George said. “I feel me and Cam, we know that we need each other so that makes it even more a reason for us to push harder. He can rely on me, and I can rely on him. We just have to work together on everything.

“It’s great to have a quarterback with his skillset – he can run the ball, scramble and throw it, scramble and run, do it all.”

As for George’s background? He arrived at Miami as a 4-star highly touted playmaker out of Lauderhill (Fla.) Plantation High School. As a freshman at Miami in 2021 he played in nine games off the bench and had seven catches for 183 yards, then in 2022 he was suspended for the first two games and never had more than 39 yards in a game (vs. Pitt). He ended with 13 receptions for 130 yards.

That led to his solid numbers last year when, per Pro Football Focus , he graded out at a solid 73.4 percent (75.4 receiving grade) in 638 reps with 90 targets. He was noted with six drops, 9.3 yards after the catch and was called for the aforementioned five penalties (no other WR had more than one).

In 2022 he graded out at 64.2 percent in 168 reps and had a 62.3 receiving grade with two dropped passes on 17 targets.

He’s also worked in as a returner. In 2022 he had five punt returns with a long of 18 yards; his lone kickoff return went for 21 yards. This past season he had two punt returns for five yards.

Last year he also had a pair of 100-yard games – six catches for 125 yards and a TD vs. North Carolina and five receptions for 153 yards and two scores at FSU. He added 94 yards and three TDs against Texas A&M. So pretty good in three of Miami’s biggest games.

Now he’s part of an offense that is expected to be a major force running and passing.

“You can’t just drop eight, have to stop the run, stop the tight end, play real football now,” he says, adding that even with all the offensive playmakers there’s a sense of unselfish play.

“We talk about that all the time, know there’ s only one football and it’ll be passed around to everybody,” George said. “We all have to make the most of our opportunity, do what we have to do to win games.”

As for the perception that George’s head wasn’t fully in the game as a team-first, football-is-my-life kind of guy?

That’s long in the past.

“I feel I’m mature more, my teammates helped me with my problems and we all have grown,” George said. “With this game you have to grow and you learn stuff and everything is a lesson.”

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