The Auburn Tigers took perhaps the biggest loss of talent in the country to the transfer portal this past January when Cam Coleman took his talents to Austin to rock the Texas Longhorns' burnt orange in 2026.
A source who spoke to ESPN's Eli Lederman
and Max Olson said that Coleman reminds him of legendary Detroit Lions and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets wideout Calvin Johnson, the owner for most receiving yards in a single season and most receiving yards per game in NFL history.
"You're going to have to command some type of double-team, because it's not a 50-50 ball with him -- it's almost 80-20. He's going to go up and get it," a former SEC staffer told the ESPN team. Deep breaths, Auburn fans.
It's been a difficult offseason for the Tigers. Coleman has made tremendous strides on the Forty Acres with Arch Manning, showing strong chemistry with the Heisman favorite quarterback at the team's open practice at DKR Stadium in April. Coleman has bulked up noticeably, showing off an NFL physique that wasn't a thing on the Plains.
Now we're hearing "Megatron" comparisons. It's not the first time the two have been compared, but if you notice, in Patrick Nix's assessment of Coleman while at Central High School, strength and size were the key things missing in the comparison.
"He's not quite as big as Calvin, sizewise, as far as strength and all. Super long, great catch radius, that kind of thing that Calvin had. I think those are going to be the comparisons because of the length, and I think the difference that both of those guys have is just their speed," Nix said in 2023 when Coleman committed to the Texas A&M Aggies. Coleman addressed those two things. Perhaps the "Megatron" numbers will now follow.
Coleman didn't crack the top 100 nationally in yards and touchdowns while rocking orange and blue. That, plus the lack of effort and attention he put into bulking up, never had Johnson's name coming up in East Central Alabama.
Quite frankly, Coleman didn't feel like a superstar during his Tigers tenure. Even in leaving, though, he was recognized as unrivaled in the sport by everyone but the Ohio State Buckeyes' Jeremiah Smith, the only player who had been ranked ahead of him in the 2024 recruiting cycle. "I think Cam Coleman is in a stratosphere that is only approached by Jeremiah Smith," a Big Ten staffer told ESPN.
And to think, Hugh Freeze couldn't find someone to throw him the ball and maximize his skill set. That was the only thing Coleman asked for coming out of Central. No wonder he left home for greener pastures.
Cam Coleman left Auburn a winner. The Tigers undoubtedly lost.
Don't feel too bad about Coleman's best QB performance in the state of Alabama coming from Bobby Coleman Jr. as a Red Devil. Don't feel too bad for Coleman at all. As he leaves Auburn, the blame is entirely on anyone but him, even if he is at fault for the underperformance to some degree.
The Tigers are the big losers here. Coleman got his money, but Auburn didn't get nearly the return it should've gotten, since the receiver's effort in practice was in question and his defining moment was probably fumbling the 2025 Iron Bowl away.
Coleman suffered no reputational loss and now plays for the second-richest university in the country, with the biggest name in the sport throwing him the ball. He could miss the 2026 season entirely with nearly any injury and still be a first-round pick next April off potential alone.
Coleman stays winning. Hopefully, the team he left behind, the Tigers, stops losing, or Coleman's "Megatron" impression in Central Texas will only hurt more.
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