Miami transfer EDGE Collins Acheampong commits to UCLA, breaks reasons choice
Acheampong might have an instant effect at UCLA at a crucial position of need.
Former Miami edge rusher Collins Acheampong has committed to UCLA. Acheampong has yet to be rated in 247Sports’ transfer rankings but was a consensus four-star prospect as the No. 179 player nationally, No. 23 defensive lineman and No. 15 player from California for the class of 2023.
“I’m very excited to be back home,” Acheampong, who prepped at Rancho Santa Margarita (Calif.) Santa Margarita as a senior. “This is a great opportunity for me at UCLA.
“UCLA was the first school to ever notice me and the first school to offer me a whole year before anyone else. I’ve always had fantastic friends at UCLA and there’s no better feeling than going back home.”
The decision was a football one, as well as being closer to family, he said.
“Having family and friends around me is big but I also get to play for one of the best defensive line coaches in the country,” Acheampong added. “(Defensive coordinator and defensive line/outside linebackers coach) Ikaika Malloe is a great coach and does a great job developing edge rushers.
“We had a great relationship back in high school so I’m very excited to work with him. He understands me as a person, not just a player so he’s more than a coach and I think there’s a lot of chance to play that edge position with the twins and (Laiatu) Latu heading to the NFL.”
Miami won a tight recruiting fight over Michigan back in high school but Acheampong claimed he never felt comfortable in South Florida.
“It was tough at Miami,” Acheampong remarked. “I was never healthy, I went there injured and then needed a second surgery in July.
“On top of that, the two coaches I was closest with during the recruiting process, Kevin Steele and Rod Wright, left right when I got there. So I felt kind of alone and that’s another reason why I’m enthusiastic about UCLA. I’m going to be around a lot of folks that I know pretty well and I know I’ll be taken care of.”
Acheampong will enroll at UCLA later this month.
“Me and my mother are actually driving there as we speak,” Acheampong remarked. “It’s a three-day trek from Miami and we’re in Tennessee right now, so hopefully we’ll be there by (Thursday).
“I’m still not 100% yet, but I will be by spring practice. I simply need to get back in shape and build the strength back in my knee, but I’ll get there. I still learned a lot of football at Miami, a lot of basics, so I’ll be ready to go.”
Acheampong is a talent with a great upside, but it may take some time to get there. His senior year was his first playing football since he was just a freshman and he, unfortunately for him, was only able to play in four games.
He tore his meniscus during a practice and missed the remainder of the season. He was invited to play in the Under Armour All-America Game but unable to play, thus he still lacks a ton of game experience.
Saying that, his potential is really tremendous. We explained his back story countless times but it’s worth reiterating.
He moved over to the States from Ghana as a basketball player, enrolling in tiny Anaheim (Calif.) Fairmont Prep. He played football that year as well and showed promise but his school shut down the football program his sophomore year due to Covid and that appeared to be the end of his gridiron days.
The summer before his senior year, video of him working out began to circulate and he rapidly became one of the hottest recruits out West. Soon enough, just about every top program in the country was all over him and he eventually committed to Michigan before flipping to Miami.
He possesses an athletic 6-foot-7, 270-pound build, can bend and has lots of quick twitch to him. He made the transition to Santa Margarita and showed a ton of promise early on before going down with an injury and he could finish up an impact player for UCLA.
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