Miami WR coach watches top-15 prospect’s spring game: ‘I just want to go off the saying that you love who loves you’

Miami (Fla.) Northwestern four-star 2026 receiver Calvin Russell has steadily received increasing amounts of attention from major programs as he’s climbed the recruiting rankings, and the Hurricanes have been a consistent presence in the No. 13 overall prospect’s picture since offering last summer.

Miami receivers coach Kevin Beard dropped by Traz Powell Stadium late last week to watch the No. 2 receiver’s spring game after visiting his school earlier this month. Russell wasn’t able to interact with Beard while he was at the spring game but has kept in regular contact with the Hurricanes as his recruitment has picked up. Feeling substantial attention from Miami over the last month has helped boost his interest in the program.

“He told me he wanted to get to the game, make sure he got there and made sure he had it on his schedule,” Russell said. “He made sure he could give me some pointers about what I did wrong and what I did right. That was a major thing for him. We always talk about football and how he develops his players and how it would be home at Miami. He teaches me a whole lot about football.”

Miami head coach Mario Cristobal visited Russell’s school earlier this spring and made a strong impression, too. Russell said it meant a lot for Miami’s head coach to personally visit his school and made him feel like a major priority. He considers the Hurricanes one of his top schools but is also heavily interested in Georgia, Alabama, Florida State, LSU and Syracuse . Each staff has visited his school this spring.

Russell said Syracuse has done the best job building a relationship early on and feels the Orange will have a legitimate shot to land the 6-foot-6.5, 190-pound wideout. But he also knows he could see himself at Miami.

“(Cristobal) has shown me a lot,” Russell said. “He showed me that I definitely want to be a player he coaches in the future.”

Russell said his relationship with a coaching staff and intensity a program recruits him with will play large roles in his decision, which he doesn’t expect to make for another year. But if the Hurricanes continue on their current path, they’ll have a strong chance to land him.

“I just want to go off the saying that you love who loves you,” Russell said.

CaneSport’s Take

Russell is one of the early must-lands for Miami in the 2026 class and goes to a school the Hurricanes historically have strong recruiting ties to, although the program has been down in recent years. With Miami making an active effort to restore the pipeline between Northwestern and Coral Gables, we expect the Hurricanes to be all over Russell for the next year and a half.

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