“Had to Check…”: Steve Sarkisian Reveals Wild Reaction to Texas WR’s Viral Practice Moment, Compares Him to Former Alabama Star

Some catches in practice are forgotten in five minutes. Others make a head coach walk over just to inspect a player’s hands. During Friday’s practice, transfer wide receiver Cam Coleman gave Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian one of those unbelievable moments, prompting a reaction that was every bit as entertaining as the play itself.

“That was a crazy catch, man,” Steve Sarkisian said via KVUE’s Cory Mose. “I don’t know. I had to check his gloves – I thought it was the old school stickum on there. That was a heck of a play.”

For context, stickum is the sticky goo old-time players used before modern gloves existed. Sarkisian was joking, but his point was clear. The ball had no right staying in Coleman’s hands.

The play started with a tipped pass from quarterback Arch Manning that drifted behind Coleman. Instead of letting it fall dead, Coleman leapt backward into the air, snared the ball with only his left hand, and twisted his body on the way down. He landed on his left foot, spun around two defenders, and burst into the end zone for a touchdown.

But Sarkisian’s excitement went beyond a single highlight reel play. Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing over 200 pounds, Coleman has the physical build of an elite target, but height alone does not guarantee acrobatic catches.

What set Coleman apart on that play was his catch radius: his rare ability to reach, twist, and adjust to off-target throws in midair without losing his balance. Those mechanical traits often do not show up on recruiting charts, but they show up instantly when a quarterback throws a bad ball.

“I think that’s one of his strengths,” he said. “Everybody’s got strengths and weaknesses in their game, and one of his strengths is his catch radius.”

Cam Coleman has already shown he can produce outside of practice. In two seasons at Auburn, he caught 93 passes for 1,306 yards and 13 touchdowns. In 2025, he started all 12 games and finished with 56 catches for 708 yards and five scores. He also had two 100-yard games, one against Vanderbilt where he recorded a career-high 143 yards.

Coleman has impressed his head coach to such an extent that when Sarkisian looks at the WR, he sees shades of a player he knows intimately. And that’s former Alabama star and NFL legend Julio Jones.

Steve Sarkisian compares Cam Coleman to Julio Jones

Steve Sarkisian has coached some serious receivers. He served as offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons when Julio Jones was in his prime. So when reporters asked if Coleman reminded him of anyone, Sarkisian did not hesitate to bring up the former Crimson Tide powerhouse.

“Julio Jones at Atlanta,” he said when asked if his receiver reminded him of anyone. “Julio was similar that way, had that ability to go high, point those balls the way that he does and still be a vertical threat. Cam can still run – he’s not a possession guy, he can run, and Julio was that way.”

Having a receiver who can go up and snatch misplaced balls is a dream scenario for quarterback Arch Manning. But Sarkisian seems equally pleased with Coleman’s mindset. The head coach has repeatedly praised Coleman’s humble demeanor and practice habits, noting that when your marquee players work the hardest, it sets the standard for the entire locker room.

“When your best players are your best practice players, they send a great message to the rest of the team,” he said.

Highlight clips and comparisons to NFL legends build excitement in August, but Coleman’s real test begins when those spectacular practice moments need to happen during real SEC games. 

The post “Had to Check…”: Steve Sarkisian Reveals Wild Reaction to Texas WR’s Viral Practice Moment, Compares Him to Former Alabama Star appeared first on EssentiallySports.