Cam Ward has a great message about Shannon Dawson for 5-star QB commit Israel Abrams

It should be no surprise that Cam Ward is a charter member of Shannon Dawson's fan club.

Ward had a chance to work with five-star quarterback commit Israel Abrams last week and talked about his relationship with the Miami Hurricanes offensive coordinator. Even though Ward and Dawson spent just one year together, it proved to be very successful for both parties. Ward went on to win the Davey O'Brien Trophy, finish second in Heisman voting and was selected first overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. In 2024, Ward proved to be a perfect fit for Dawson's offense and led the Hurricanes to their first 10-win season in seven years. 

"Really, if I played all four years with Coach Dawson, I probably would've led everything in college," Ward said. "That's how cool he is just with the quarterback position. We had some heated arguments on the field, but he wants to win. That's why I [mess] with Dawson."

Shannon Dawson has established himself as one of college football's top offensive coordinators

One of Cristobal's main priorities during the offseason was to lock up both Dawson and defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman to long-term contracts. That will give the Hurricanes the coaching stability necessary to maintain a championship-level program for the future, especially with several schools expressing interest in both as potential head coaches.

"They have been instrumental in the rise of our program," Cristobal said on the ACC Network in May. "They were signed to multiple-year deals. They deserve that, and they have earned that. They love being in Miami. They've been awesome, and I think they also recognize the great situation they have in terms of players, in terms of the staff around them, opportunity. You can go in this coaching industry for a long, long time and not have a set of tools they have to work with.

READ MORE: Miami rewards Shannon Dawson and Corey Hetherman after breakthrough 2025 season

Dawson's success with quarterbacks at Miami is unquestioned. Ward set a school record with 4,313 yards and led the FBS with 39 touchdowns in 2024. Last year, Carson Beck completed over 72 percent of his throws, finishing with 3,813 yards and 30 touchdowns. Dawson has always made it clear what he wants from his quarterbacks — make the right decisions and limit mistakes. At times Dawson admitted that Ward's ability to extend plays and try to turn something out of nothing could be stressful, but he always appreciated the effort and desire to win.

"I'm a big fan of routine plays, you know? I really am. So I stress that probably more than anything," Dawson said back in 2024. "You get players, not just at the quarterback position, but obviously that's the one that touches the ball every time, so you're going to try to do things that they are comfortable doing and that they do well."

Dawson has proven to adjust his offenses to the talents of his players. He will do it again this season with Darian Mensah and after Abrams worked out for him a couple of weeks ago, it's clear that the coach is already thinking about his game plans for the future. 

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