How UM is handling injuries amid COVID-19. And young LBs are standing out to Miami’s DC
The long list of injured players the Miami Hurricanes announced leading into spring practices were only supposed to be a temporary problem. Miami was going to be without nearly dozen players — including a significant chunk at linebacker — for the spring, but the Hurricanes were optimistic they would all be ready for the season.
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced colleges into remote learning and chased athletes from their state-of-the-art facilities, Miami worried those injuries would become a larger, lingering problem. How could these players rehabilitate properly with makeshift weight rooms and limited interaction with doctors?
“That was a big concern for us,” said defensive coordinator Blake Baker, whose linebackers room has been hit particularly hard by injuries.
It has been exactly two months since most students left Coral Gables for the start of the spring break they never returned from, and remote rehab has been a massive success, Baker said.
Rehabilitation coordinator Jeff Ruiz has been meeting with injured players via video conferencing to talk them through exercises remotely. So far, it hasn’t left anyone behind schedule.
“Truth be told,” Baker said, “every single guy that we’ve had out with an injury on the defensive side of the ball is, to his estimation, probably ahead of schedule.”
On defense, most of the injuries were concentrated at linebacker, which made for a unique challenge as Miami tried to replace longtime starters Shaquille Quarterman and Michael Pinckney without all the information it hoped to have. Bradley Jennings Jr., Waynmon Steed, Sam Brooks Jr., Tirek Austin-Cave and Corey Flagg Jr. were all supposed to miss the spring because of various injuries, leaving Zach McCloud, Patrick Joyner Jr. and Avery Huff as the only three healthy scholarship linebackers.
McCloud is entrenched as one starter after redshirting last season to lead the Hurricanes defense as a redshirt senior this year. Brooks, a sophomore, started in the Independence Bowl with Pinckney injured and led Miami with 12 tackles in the 14-0 loss to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. No one else has started a college game.
In the extremely limited sample size of four spring practices, Baker did get to take a close look at Huff, who was the top-ranked linebacker in the Hurricanes’ Class of 2019, according to the 247Sports.com composite rankings. While Brooks contributed as a freshman at a thin position, Huff took an academic redshirt.
Those two are potentially the future of the position and maybe even the present. One could be counted on to start next to McCloud and the other will almost certainly contribute in some capacity.
Huff has flashed the potential to fit either role and both have the speed Miami has started to prioritize even more on defense.
“Avery I think is coming along very nicely, as well. He still has, in my opinion, further to go, but he brings such a unique athletic ability. He has a very, very good feel for the game,” Baker said. “Having him for those four days in spring ball — as fast as our offense goes, you can still see the growth that he was having in those four days, so I’m excited about both of those two. I think both of those two guys are going to play a significant role in our defense next year. It’ll be interesting to see how everything unfolds as far as season preparation. I’m definitely excited about those two.
“They can run. Those guys are very long and can run. As good of a coach as some of us out there might think we are, we can’t teach speed, so it’s definitely good to have their speed on board with the Canes.”
