Miami Hurricanes Freshman Nathaniel "Ray Ray" Joseph Adjusts to College Football Thanks to High School Experience
Miami Hurricanes freshman wide receiver Nathaniel "Ray Ray" Joseph has found his transition to college football smoother than expected, thanks in part to his background at Miami Edison High School under coach Luther Campbell. Joseph's experience under the demanding coach has set the stage for his current successes at the University of Miami.
Joseph reflected on his high school experience, saying, "I mean I just took in everything I could as soon as I got here. I came from Miami Edison and we put in a lot of hard work, so when I came here it kind of got easier because the way coach Luke had practice, he had us out they're dying. So when I got here and it's way more controlled and way more organized, it made it way smoother. I think having a tough high school coach made it way more simple when I got here.”
During his first few months at Miami, Joseph credits several veteran receivers and new receivers coach Kevin Beard for helping him adapt to college football. "Just me watching like X (Xavier Restrepo), Brashard (Smith), all the receivers really. And Coach KB came and he showed me a lot of stuff that I couldn't do. Stuff I got to get better at."
Joseph is committed to putting in the hard work, often arriving hours before practice begins to get in extra reps. "I'm here every morning before the sun come up, catching jugs every morning routine. Whoever comes get that work, they come get that work, but I'm here every day consistently. And if I ain't got nobody on the jug with me, I got a quarterback out here throwing it to me – so I'm definitely putting in work.”
He elaborated on his pre-practice routine, saying, "I'm trying to catch at least a 50 to 100 before everybody, so I'm here – they say be here at 8, I'm here at 6. I'm here already in the morning out here catching. If the days we got to be here by 7:30, I'm here at 5. I'm just in here getting there working because hard work pays off and I've been learned that from high school. I never was the biggest guy, so just putting in the hard work is really what got me here and what's gonna get me to the next level.”
Joseph is eager to contribute to the team, getting involved in both kick return and punt return duties with the second-team. He acknowledges the biggest difference between high school and college football is the mental aspect, noting that players are both more talented and smarter at this level.
“I'm still running around like I’ve always been doing – just using my speed. But really the smartness of the DBs. Them not running out there and bailing out, them being way more patient – it's just a lot of stuff that it's way more mental now than than it was in high school. It's more physical and everybody’s talented now and smarter.”
Joseph reflected on his high school experience, saying, "I mean I just took in everything I could as soon as I got here. I came from Miami Edison and we put in a lot of hard work, so when I came here it kind of got easier because the way coach Luke had practice, he had us out they're dying. So when I got here and it's way more controlled and way more organized, it made it way smoother. I think having a tough high school coach made it way more simple when I got here.”
During his first few months at Miami, Joseph credits several veteran receivers and new receivers coach Kevin Beard for helping him adapt to college football. "Just me watching like X (Xavier Restrepo), Brashard (Smith), all the receivers really. And Coach KB came and he showed me a lot of stuff that I couldn't do. Stuff I got to get better at."
Joseph is committed to putting in the hard work, often arriving hours before practice begins to get in extra reps. "I'm here every morning before the sun come up, catching jugs every morning routine. Whoever comes get that work, they come get that work, but I'm here every day consistently. And if I ain't got nobody on the jug with me, I got a quarterback out here throwing it to me – so I'm definitely putting in work.”
He elaborated on his pre-practice routine, saying, "I'm trying to catch at least a 50 to 100 before everybody, so I'm here – they say be here at 8, I'm here at 6. I'm here already in the morning out here catching. If the days we got to be here by 7:30, I'm here at 5. I'm just in here getting there working because hard work pays off and I've been learned that from high school. I never was the biggest guy, so just putting in the hard work is really what got me here and what's gonna get me to the next level.”
Joseph is eager to contribute to the team, getting involved in both kick return and punt return duties with the second-team. He acknowledges the biggest difference between high school and college football is the mental aspect, noting that players are both more talented and smarter at this level.
“I'm still running around like I’ve always been doing – just using my speed. But really the smartness of the DBs. Them not running out there and bailing out, them being way more patient – it's just a lot of stuff that it's way more mental now than than it was in high school. It's more physical and everybody’s talented now and smarter.”
