A-List No. 3: What makes 5-star WR Cam Coleman so unique?

The A-List is AL.com’s ranking of the top 15 senior prospects in the state of Alabama. We will count down one each day until No. 1 is revealed Aug. 23.

Cam Coleman’s best football may be ahead of him.

Way ahead of him.

The Central-Phenix City star wide receiver and Texas A&M commit just recently turned 17.

“I don’t know if we will see his best football this year,” Central coach Patrick Nix said. “In fact, I’m not sure the next level will see it either. It might not be until the level after that (NFL) because he is going to continue to get better and grow and learn and all those things as he plays more.”

Coleman, a 5-star recruit and the top senior receiver in the state of Alabama – just ahead of Foley’s Perry Thompson, caught 31 passes for 542 yards and 6 TDs as a junior.

He was a part of a Red Devil team that had four receivers catch at least 25 passes. Michigan signee Karmello English led the way with 70.

“Coleman has some of the most unique wide receiver traits in the nation, sporting true length with the ball skills and overall athleticism to make plays at the catch point and certainly after the catch,” said John Garcia Jr., national recruiting analyst for Rivals. “The catch radius, true lower-body explosiveness and body control Coleman illustrated makes him a threat for a big play even against good coverage. He has the type of frame and game that widens the margin for error for the quarterback.”

The 6-foot-3.5, 185-pound Coleman quickly rose in the recruiting rankings this offseason. On3 and Rivals both have him as the No. 1 senior in the state of Alabama. The 247 rankings have him at No. 3.

He is also No. 3 on AL.com’s A-List of top senior recruits in the state. Nix said Coleman compares favorably to English and some of the other top receivers he has coached in his career.

“He is very, very talented for sure but equally as good of a worker,” he said. “He really does a good job of working and trying to learn and grow and get better. He is just so young right now. He just turned 17. He is still learning and growing, but he is very coachable. He wants to learn, wants to grow, wants to be great and has a great mindset to go along with the great ability.”

Nix said Coleman is actually a combination of several of the top players he has had in the past.

“He’s very long. He has great ball skills, extremely good speed for as big as he is,” Nix said. “He’s got a lot of good qualities for sure.”

Coleman surprised many experts on July 4th when he committed to Texas A&M over nearby Auburn, Clemson, Florida State and Florida among others. Garcia said his future is extremely bright.

“As he fills out his frame and becomes a more consistent route-runner, Coleman has early-impact potential at the next level, regardless of opponent, at least from a physical standpoint,” he said. “If it all comes together, he has true wide receiver 1 potential not only on his college team, but within the SEC and perhaps the country by the time he gets into his 20s.”

A-LIST NO. 3: CAM COLEMAN, CENTRAL-PHENIX CITY

Position: Wide receiver

Height/weight: 6-3.5, 185

College status: Committed to Texas A&M

Randy Kennedy’s scouting report: Cam Coleman is the next in line among great wide receivers produced by Central-Phenix City. In recent years that’s included Karmello English (Michigan), Jackson Meeks (Georgia) and Justyn Ross (Clemson). Coleman may be the most physically imposing of them all. Coleman’s commitment to Texas A&M means the Aggies will have a big receiver in the mold of former star Mike Evans.

THE 2024 A-LIST

No. 15: Josh Flowers, QB, Baker

No. 14: Bobby Pruitt, LB, Theodore

No. 13: JaCorey Whitted, TE, McAdory

No. 12: Kevin Riley, RB, Tuscaloosa County

No. 11: J’Marion Burnette, RB, Andalusia

No. 10: William Sanders, OL, Brookwood

No. 9: Jordan Ross, EDGE, Vestavia Hills

No. 8: Joseph Phillips, LB, Booker T. Washington

No. 7: Sterling Dixon, LB, Spanish Fort

No. 6: Isaia Faga, DL, Central-Phenix City

No. 5: Jeremiah Beaman, DL, Parker