Podcast: Season preview, Pt. 2 — 4 things we trust (and 4 we don’t) about Miami’s defense
Training camp is here, which means it’s time to wrap up our two-part preview of the Miami Hurricanes’ upcoming season.
This week, it’s Part 2 of 2 for the Eye on the U podcast’s Miami preview, as David Wilson and Susan Miller Degnan, the Hurricanes beat writer for the Miami Herald, break down the Hurricanes’ defense.
It’s not quite as easy to set expectations for the defense as it was for the offense last week. As long as quarterback D’Eriq King stays healthy, Miami’s offense should be great. The defense, on the other hand, is dotted with question marks.
Let’s start with the good: The safeties, led by star senior Bubba Bolden, give the Hurricanes a foundation with a potential All-American, several experienced veterans and even a five-star freshman. They also have a pretty good coach leading them with defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson ready to impart his wisdom on the entire secondary.
Elsewhere, Miami also feels good about its defensive tackles and two transfers, who will, at the very least, be reliable starters for the Hurricanes at two major positions of need.
The question marks, at least for now, outweigh the confidence.
What in the world will Miami’s linebacker situation look like? Can the Hurricanes find a potential NFL defensive end this season? How will cornerbacks coach DeMarcus Van Dyke and inside linebackers coach Ishmael Arisitde fare in their first ever stints as Division I position coaches? Will coach Manny Diaz be able to juggle his program-leading responsibilities with defensive coordinator duties?
The bones of a good defense are there in Coral Gables, but there are too many unknowns to have a really good feeling about what it’s going to look like when the 2021 college football season begins next month. Maybe we’ll have a better idea after this first weekend of practice.
We’ll be back with a full report on that next week, so please continue to rate, review and subscribe to the podcast because we’ll be bringing you a new episode every week throughout the 2021 season.
