Podcast: What have we learned from the first week of Miami Hurricanes spring practice?
It’s hard to remember the last time spring practice for the Miami Hurricanes brought along such intrigue. Even when Manny Diaz entered his first spring as coach last year, Miami had not done this much to quickly build excitement around the program.
Since they last took the field for their embarrassing Independence Bowl loss to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, the Hurricanes have changed their offensive coordinator and quarterback, made about a dozen new additions on defense and even made Ed Reed a part of the program.
On Monday, “The New Miami” was new again as the Hurricanes took the field for the first of 15 spring practices in South Florida. Susan Miller Degnan, the Hurricanes beat writer for the Miami Herald, has been in Coral Gables for all three of the Hurricanes’ practices and provides the scoop for David Wilson on this episode of the Eye on the U podcast. You have burning questions and so does Wilson, who has been out of the loop during Miami’s first few practices.
Like we have on every episode all year, we have to start with the offense. Quarterback D’Eriq King is impressing everyone to the point it’s fair to wonder whether this is really a quarterback competition or just a formality before Diaz and Co. officially name the redshirt senior as the starter. Offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee, who’s also the quarterbacks coach, is having an impressive first week, too. At least so far, things are clearly different on offense for the Hurricanes.
This spring isn’t just about the quarterback and coordinator, though. There are new additions all over the field, including more than a dozen freshmen and Quincy Roche, an All-American defensive line transfer from the Temple Owls. A handful of the newcomers are already turning heads, and some of the redshirt freshmen and sophomores are showing off their progress in Season 2. Degnan runs through a list of those impressing so far and what is making them stand out.
All this and we still haven’t even talked about Jaelan Phillips, who took the field for the first time Monday. The defensive linemen was once the No. 1 recruit in the country before injuries quickly derailed his career with the UCLA Bruins. The early returns from Miami suggest the potential is still there for Phillips to be a serious difference-maker in 2020 and Degnan explains why.
