Jonah Coleman, Arizona football's own Dodge Ram TRX truck, 'fantastic' as UA starting RB

Before the season, Arizona running backs coach Scottie Graham compared his position group to something uttered at Baskin Robbins. 

"We got different flavors," he said. 

Maybe not 31, but "we got power running, we got speed, we got everything," Graham said.

"When you talk about the rainbow when it comes to running backs, you got speed, power, elusive, they catch the ball well," Graham added. "I'm very lucky to coach this group." 

Now? Arizona's running back room is akin to a garage. 

"We have this thing in the room where we label ourselves as cars," Arizona sophomore running back Jonah Coleman said.

According to Coleman, senior running back Michael Wiley (Ferrari) and redshirt freshman Rayshon Luke (Lamborghini) are sports cars. Senior DJ Williams is a Jeep Trackhawk because "he's so big he'll run through you, but he'll literally run past you."

"We don't know how he does it," Coleman said of Williams. "I think DJ is the fastest on the team when he gets rolling."

The Trackhawk is slightly different than Williams' actual everyday vehicle that he drives, which is a monster truck-sized pickup truck with tires the size of kiddy pools.

"I literally have to jump in his truck," Coleman said. "I don't know how he does it, but I have to jump in it every time."

As for Coleman, his car comparison made by his peers and coaches is a Dodge Ram "TRX" truck. 

"They joke around with me and lower my car," Coleman said with a smirk.

It's actually fitting for Coleman. The TRX is a "versatile, do-it-all sport truck," said MotorTrend.com in the description of the 2023 TRX. 

"Running style, I can do it all," he said. "I can make guys miss, I've been working on that this year in the offseason. I can run through you, over you and around you, and I can catch the ball, so I'm pretty much an all-around back."

The 5-9, 220-pound Coleman, a stout, big-legged and powerful runner, has shown glimpses of former UCLA and Jacksonville Jaguars star running back Maurice Jones-Drew in his game. Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch was on the Jaguars' staff for Jones-Drew's final season in 2013. 

"It's kind of funny. We watch some highlights of certain plays that we put in and Maurice Jones-Drew's will be right there," Coleman said. "Everyone will be like, 'There goes Jonah.' I can see some similarities, height-wise." 

Wiley said in the spring that he picks "on (Coleman) for the Maurice Jones-Drew (comparison), but Maurice Jones-Drew is a hell of a running back."

Currently, Coleman emulates his game after Las Vegas Raiders star Josh Jacobs. 

"He catches the ball, he runs through tackles, very physical runner," Coleman said of Jacobs. "He'll run through you, over you and around you, and he's my favorite back in the league right now." 

Coleman not only leads the Wildcats in rushing with 220 yards on 32 carries this season, he's fourth in receiving with 154 yards. His only touchdown of the season is a 7-yard touchdown catch in the season opener against Northern Arizona. 

Coleman and Williams were key components in Arizona's go-ahead touchdown drive in the fourth quarter of the Wildcats' 21-20 win at Stanford on Sept. 23. 

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Wiley's lower-body injury at Stanford two weeks ago has elevated the roles of Coleman, Williams and Luke. Coleman started three games for the Wildcats last season as a true freshman, albeit combined for two carries against USC and UCLA. At Washington last season, Coleman had a career-high in carries (14). As the headline running back with Wiley nursing an injury, Coleman "has been fantastic," said UA offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll.

"We expected that from him. This isn't a surprise that he's performing well. He can do a variety of different things for us as well as giving us an attitude in the run game," Carroll said. "He ran really hard the other night. He's run really hard every game this season. So we're excited about him when he's back there and we expect more big things from him."

The 5-9, 220-pound Coleman leads the Wildcats in yards after contact (158) and is averaging 4.94 yards after contact, according to Pro Football Focus. 

"For Jonah, he's got some natural leverage," Carroll said. "He's a tough guy to form tackle, but he's done a really great job of building his body up."

Running with conviction and refusing to get tackled is a mindset instilled by Graham. 

It's a simple message, per Coleman: "'What is your why? And have a chip on your shoulder. Make 'em feel it every time you get the ball. They don't want to tackle you, so when you get the ball, make them feel it, soften them up.'" 

Coleman's "why" is his parents and nine siblings — five sisters and four brothers — in Stockton, California. Coleman is "right in the middle."

"I come from a big family," Coleman said. "The struggles and the things we've been through in life sits with me, and that's my drive and motivation to do what I do."

With that many siblings, "holidays and things like that are amazing, being around all your siblings and parents," Coleman said.

"It also gets hectic being all in one house and sharing rooms and clothes and things like that," he added. 

Since arriving at Arizona last spring, Coleman, who shaved roughly 10 pounds upon arrival, has understudied Wiley and taken "some of the great plays he makes and try to incorporate it into my game, like the stiff-arm, making guys miss in the secondary and things like that. ... Just trying to get me right. (I'm) draining his brain before he leaves."

Added Coleman: "I grew a lot in life and in football.

"Coach Graham and the older guys in the room teaching me life lessons as we go on, and it's just been an amazing experience since I've been here." 

Red threads

Adam Braun, the head of Arizona's football equipment operations, approached Fisch before the Wildcats' game against UTEP and suggested red uniforms for the Pac-12 home opener against Washington.  

"'Hey, what do you think about breaking out some red jerseys for these guys for this game?'" Fisch said.

Fisch had two requirements: Have a 3-1 record and have the first sellout of the season. 

"Those were the two criteria," Fisch said. "When those two things happened, I gave the stamp of approval and Adam was ready." 

Arizona donned red uniforms for the first time since the Washington loss in 2019. Under Fisch, Arizona has always worn either navy blue or white uniforms, which are inspired by the "Desert Swarm" era.  

"The guys for a couple of years have been begging me to have a little color-rush mentality. The NFL does it," he said. "I know teams out there have been doing a bunch of different jerseys. I've held on to the tradition and I like the jerseys we wear every week and the colors of either blue or white. But the guys have been asking for a color rush for a while."