Miami Hurricanes ‘tired of being average’ as they put Day 1 of spring behind them
University of Miami spring practice commenced on a gorgeous Saturday morning at Greentree Field with the same passion displayed for dozens of previous years by the greats of the past.
Players caught passes. Players dropped passes. Players even vomited, a sure sign the hard work coach Mario Cristobal demands is in progress. The heat rising near 90 degrees, as usual, did its part.
Whether this Day 1 leads to a far better season than the 5-7 of 2022 remains to be seen, but with formerly injured quarterback Tyler Van Dyke back flinging passes, most of the vaunted freshman class participating, plenty of veterans there to guide them and new faces highlighting the coaching staff, Cristobal — always hands on — seemed cautiously pleased.
“Execution overall for a Day 1,’’ Cristobal said, “was fairly decent.’’
He knows it’s just the start.
“As you would expect we had lots of energy out there,’’ the coach said. “We have a few new coaches. They come from really good programs so it was no surprise that they were on point and picked up the pace very quickly as we adapt to a couple different schemes.”
Cristobal said some players stood out “a little bit more than others,’’ but he mentioned “accountability, running routes from point A to point B, finishing plays and certainly energy overall” drawing his attention.
“An attempt to improve culture was evident,’’ Cristobal said. “That being said, lots to build on, lots of good film to watch, big junior day today so a lot going on here today in Coral Gables.”
Van Dyke was surrounded by fellow scholarship quarterbacks Jacurri Brown, a soon-to-be sophomore, and freshman early enrollee Emory Williams, a sturdy 6-5 and 200-plus-pound signal caller from Milton, near Pensacola, in the Florida Panhandle.
“That guy is talented,’’ Cristobal said of Williams, calling him “sharp, athletic, accurate” and “a good leader.”
“He can take it because we get after our quarterbacks pretty good. He responds really well, and he has also done a really good job taking to the tutelage of both Jacurri and the rest of the quarterback room in general.”
Added Cristobal, who also praised Brown: “Tyler has done a tremendous step in terms of being a leader.’’
Van Dyke said he and his teammates “are just tired of losing and being average, and we want to win games, so we’re going to use that as motivation.’’
New assistants
The new assistants, some already officially announced by UM, were all lauded by Cristobal and all hard at work. They include new offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Shannon Dawson and defensive coordinator Lance Guidry, as well as receivers coach Kevin Beard, running backs coach Tim Harris Jr., outside linebackers coach Derek Nicholson and defensive assistant Jason Taylor.
When asked what Taylor’s title would be, Cristobal said “defensive line.’’
When then asked to clarify about returning defensive line coach Joe Salave’a’s title, the coach said “defensive line. We’ve got a lot of coaches.’’
Dawson, who came from Houston, brings a prolific passing-game history to the Hurricanes, though Cristobal said he is successful on the ground as well.
“The guy has created some explosive offenses over the years,’’ Cristobal said. “He’s done it in the air. He’s done it on the ground. He’s been able to combine both the principles of getting downhill in the run game and some of the air-raid pass principles, but a great screen game and a great intermediate game.’’
Cristobal said Guidry’s defenses “come at you 100 miles per hour, and they’re physical and they finish plays and they play with a lot of energy and a lot of physicality.’’
Van Dyke said it was “a well-balanced offense’’ that would “catch defenses on their toes.’’ He also said Dawson “doesn’t criticize you and all that, so that’s good. He lets us play…lets us be free and be playmakers.’’
Former offensive coordinator/receivers coach Josh Gattis, who multiple insiders said didn’t get along well with some other assistants and players, was the only UM assistant officially announced as being “dismissed.’’
Apples and oranges
Cristobal was asked where his players are in terms of learning the new offense and defense.
“Football’s football,’’ Cristobal said. “Sometimes it’s called an apple, sometimes oranges. I think for Day 1, you’re probably where you feel you should be.
“...They’ve done well. They’ve attacked it, and we’ve got to stay on it. The best thing we can be is very real, and for Miami to make steps to keep getting better and work toward what we want to be, the stuff that we do is very hard. And when it doesn’t go exactly well, you keep coming. And when it gets harder, you just keep coming, and eventually, it’ll pop.
“We’re in that mode right now. So far, so good.”
Offensive tackle Jalen Rivers, who is practicing at left tackle instead of his usual left guard spot, not only seemed thrilled at the new, fast-moving offense, but with Saturday’s practice as a whole.
“Every first practice, especially this first spring practice, everybody is amped up, excited,’’ said Rivers, entering his fourth year. “We’re trying to move forward, better ourselves from last year. This whole offseason, our winter program was to come in spring with a new energy, new positive team building to get to our common goal. This first day everybody was happy to be out here.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2023 at 6:44 PM.
