Three Miami Hurricanes players who could be carving out larger roles for themselves
As the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes maneuver through the early portion of their schedule, several players have found themselves getting opportunities to showcase what they can bring to the team and prove they warrant more playing time.
Here are three of those players who have taken advantage of those chances and what it could mean for them moving forward.
True freshman safety Zaquan Patterson
Patterson, ranked as the No. 4 safety in the Class of 2024 recruiting cycle, played on three consecutive state championship-winning teams at Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna before enrolling at UM and instantly received high praise from his coaches and teammates. Veteran safety Mishael “Meesh” Powell even went so far as to say Patterson could be a freshman All-American.
After not playing in Miami’s season-opening road win against the Florida Gators, Patterson was on the field for 18 defensive snaps in the Hurricanes’ 56-9 rout of Florida A&M on Saturday. He had a pair of tackles and a pass breakup in that span.
“He was locked in,” Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal said. “He had an interesting realization this week that was like, ‘Man, this college football stuff is hard. It requires a lot of time and I got to learn my stuff to be effective and be successful’ and that he was going to do it. He had much better practices and he really trusted it going out there to play and he did not disappoint.”
Hurricanes defensive coordinator Lance Guidry said there was an emphasis to get Patterson into the game during the first half “when the game was still competitive.” With the Hurricanes being a safety-led team, Guidry did his best to pair Patterson with Powell when he was on the field so that Patterson “could just play.”
“He’s very smart,” Guidry said. “He understands the whole defense. He can call it all out, but when you get on the field and you’ve got to make the changes, it’s different. You’ve got to be comfortable with that.”
The plan for Patterson moving forward, Guidry said, is to get up to 15 snaps on defense per game the rest of the season.
“I think he’s right on pace,” Guidry said. “It’s hard for safety to come in as a freshman, a true freshman, and play. So he’s ahead of it. He continues to do good things. We’ll keep playing them more and more.”
Redshirt freshman running back Chris Johnson
Johnson, a former standout at Fort Lauderdale Dillard with breakaway speed, played sparingly during his first year at Miami because, in his own words, he “just wasn’t ready.”
He’s ready this year, but he’s also facing an uphill battle in playing time just because of the depth in Miami’s running back room.
However, he’s making the most of the limited time he’s on the field.
Consider this: Johnson was on the field for just three offensive snaps against Florida A&M and had the ball in his hand in all three of them: He ran once and caught a pair of passes, including a 9-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Johnson is also being used on kickoff returns.
“He’s an excellent player,” Cristobal said. “Huge upside. Gonna continue to be an excellent player, and going to continue to increase his role. He’s earned it. He has worked hard. He has made plays in practice. He has shown that he’s dependable. He’s got great ball security. He does not bust any plays, he knows what to do and how to do it. And he’s an awesome teammate. He deserves it and we’re going to make sure he gets it.”
Added offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson: “That running back room is talented, so the challenge at times is to keep people engaged. He is a talented kid that can do a lot of things. He is not just a guy that I put in there to do things with. He can run every run game scheme and pass protect. He has grown as a running back leaps and bounds. He is doing a tremendous job and I am trying to reward him with some things because he deserves it. He is a really good player and he has the ability to be dynamic with the ball in his hands. We are going to find ways to get good players involved.”
Junior cornerback D’Yoni Hill
With starting cornerback Damari Brown sidelined with injury, Hill started on Saturday against Florida A&M and played 34 snaps — tied with Powell for third-most on the defense. He had one tackle in the game and nearly recovered a fumble.
Cristobal said Hill, who transferred to UM this offseason from Marshall, “was nagged by a couple things in camp,” which is why he was limited in his playing time against Florida, but he is trending toward continuing to get steady playing time moving forward.
“We think the world of him,” Cristobal said, “and he’s got a couple years left as well. Getting better and better, continued strength and conditioning and nutrition, just a team guy. Did a great job on special teams as well.”
This story was originally published September 10, 2024 at 12:02 PM.
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