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With the NFL Scouting Combine three days away and the NFL Draft one month away, it’s time to start analyzing Baylor’s best pro candidates. I’m starting this series with Baylor WR Corey Coleman who decided to forgo his senior season and enter the draft. Coleman was an unlikely hero coming out of the Highland Hills neighborhood in Oak Cliff raised by a single mother. Fortunately, Coleman was introduced to former Baylor and Denver Broncos CB Ray Crockett (who would eventually become his godfather) and the budding athlete’s eyes were opened to the world of possibilities in football. Coleman has improved greatly over his past four years in college ball and has become Baylor’s school record holder in career (33) and single-season TDs (20).
In his redshirt freshman year, Coleman started in 13 games and had 35 receptions for 527 yards, averaging 15.1 yards per reception. His longest reception was 70 yards, he scored 2 TDs, and he averaged 40.5 yards per game. Coleman drastically improved his yardage in his sophomore season by starting in 10 games, receiving 64 passes for 1,119 yards and 11 TDs. He averaged 17.5 yards per reception, his longest catch was 72 yards and he averaged 111.9 yards per game. In his stellar junior season, Coleman started in 12 games and had 74 receptions for 1,363 yards and 20 TDs. He averaged 18.4 yards per reception, his longest catch was 81 yards, and his average yardage per game was 113.6.
Coleman has been one of the most impactful players in the Art Briles era and has been compared to the great former Baylor WR Kendall Wright. After boasting two-time All-American awards, Coleman won the Biletnikoff award, which is presented to the nation’s top receiver. The Baylor Bears website lists Coleman’s stats as timed at 4.38 in 40-yard dash, vertical jump of 45.1, measured at 11 feet, 3 inches in broad jump, and three-cone drill timed at 6.62. He has been projected to land on teams such as the Bengals and the Vikings in the first round, but multiple NFL teams have shown interest in the player.
