Miami received the last official visit from Marquez Ezzard and on the final day of that trip, he gave Mark Richt and his staff the news that they hoped for. Ezzard told the Hurricane coaches that he was going to call Coral Gables home in the future.

“Right before I left my official visit, I told them that I would be signing with them,” said Ezzard. “Me and the coaches already had the vibe, so I just needed to get down there, see what it was like, and when I got on campus, I knew Miami was the school for me.

“I saw how it was. I saw that I liked it. I knew on the visit that, that is where I wanted to be.”

Miami wide receivers coach Ron Dugans was Ezzard’s lead recruiter. Thomas Brown was involved too. He told those two and Richt the news early and it was a happy room.

“All of the Miami coaches were very excited about my decision. Coach Richt almost lost it when I told him. He kept asking me if I was sure and I kept telling him that Miami was where I was going, so he was very excited.

"All of the coaches I told went crazy."

Ole Miss did not go down easy. The Rebels put up a strong fight. They were the first school to offer Ezzard, so the star out of Stockbridge (Ga.) had built a strong relationship with multiple coaches on the staff in Oxford.

Despite that comfortable feeling he had around that staff, Ezzard went with his gut.

“It was a tough decision. It really was. I love those guys at Ole Miss and they have treated me like family, but I just feel like Miami is the best place for me. The people at Miami, the campus and the vibe I had with the players there made it feel right.

“Things just clicked for me when I was down there, so it felt great.”

The Miami coaches built strong relationships with Ezzard and they used multiple angles when recruiting him. One, of course was the history at wide receiver. Michael Irvin, Andre Johnson, Santana Moss and Reggie Wayne are just a few that shined in the NFL after being a Hurricane and Dugans made sure Ezzard knew about those guys.

The 6-foot-1, 200 pounder wants to be next.

“I know about their history and they really used that with me,” said Ezzard. “They showed me some of their alumni, they talked to me about their history and I feel I can be the next one.

“That is what I am going to work to be when I get there. They have had so many guys come through there and be successful when they leave. I want to be next.”