On Tuesday, Miami received a commitment from 2020 3-star DB Daran Branch from Amite, Louisiana. Branch recently spoke with CanesInSight to shed some light on his thought process.
"I chose Miami because of the chemistry between me and the coaches. I know they say, ‘Don’t commit to a coach, commit to the school’, and that’s true, but when you are so far away from home, you’ve gotta have chemistry with the coaches. You gotta feel that family atmosphere. And of course, the school is very, very beautiful. The campus is very beautiful. You don’t have to go anywhere; they’re building something new.”
Branch takes pride in being a versatile athlete in the secondary and stressed that this is what Miami is getting in him as a player.
“They’re going to get a hybrid defensive back that can come in and do anything they ask depending on the scheme.”
Just two weeks ago, Branch had no plans to commit any time soon. But, after thinking things over, Branch knew Miami was the place for him and decided not to wait.
“I committed now because I wanted to go ahead and get it over with. A lot of people wait, but I wanted to let everyone know where my home is right away.”
Branch told the coaches his intentions on Monday and, as expected, they were thrilled.
“They were excited. They were excited to have my commitment. They told me right then and there, ‘We will take your commitment’.”
Being from Louisiana, many people feel Branch is still just waiting for an offer from local LSU. However, Branch insisted that this is not the case. When asked if an LSU offer would change the status of his commitment, Branch said it would not.
“Absolutely not. The doors are still open, but I’m not going to be like, ‘Oh LSU offered me, let me decommit and commit to LSU’. That won't happen.”
One of the biggest reasons Branch decided on Miami is how he feels about Coach Manny Diaz.
“Coach Diaz is a great guy. I know that he hasn’t been head coach long, but I had a talk with him, and first impressions are something big with me. He’s very respectable. He’s very hard on the athletes when it comes down to competing, things like practicing and stuff like that. What made me like him even more was that the first thing he mentioned when I met him was academics. He asked me how my grades were and things like that. He was telling me how that was very important to him and his staff and the athletes.”
Miami is currently selling Branch on playing safety, but they are also leaving in the possibility of his playing the striker position. Branch sees himself as a perfect fit for the striker role.
“I think I fit in pretty good. Pretty great actually.”
Branch’s school gives him the ability to graduate early and enroll early in college, but it is still unclear if Branch will qualify for early graduation. Finally, Branch gave a message to Canes fans everywhere.
“I’m glad to be in the 305. You guys are gonna get a great athlete that's coming in to make plays and change the history of Miami.”
