Cristobal mentions a change at linebacker. And UM personnel, draft nuggets
Some Miami Hurricanes quick hits on a Wednesday:
▪ Freshman safety Bryce Fitzgerald already has carved out a role on UM’s defense, playing nine snaps against Notre Dame.
But there’s at least a second freshman defender on the minds of Hurricanes coaches: linebacker Kellen Wiley Jr. He didn’t play on defense against Notre Dame and played nine snaps against Bethune Cookman. We mentioned in August that Canes coaches are bullish on his upside.
“He’s got great energy,” Mario Cristobal told Joe Zagacki and Don Bailey Jr. on his coach’s show this week. “He’s a factor on special teams. He’s working his way into more significant playing time on defense. He’s going to be great one. He’s going to be a factor this year, not down the road.”
Wiley, who attended Armwood High in the Tampa area, was ranked the No. 30 linebacker and the No. 246 overall prospect in the 2025 class. Texas and UF were among his other offers.
Wiley, who’s 6-4 and believed to be over 230 pounds as a freshman, epitomizes what the Canes want in their linebackers: Body types who can defend the run and withstand physical punishment but are fleet enough to excel in coverage.
Cristobal said UM is better physically at linebacker than it has been in many years.
Asked about veterans Mohamed Toure and Chase Smith, Cristobal said: “Big, physical guys. We are a lot bigger at linebacker than we have ever been before. Guys now in the 240 range who can run -- play in the box with strength and power but can also go sideline to sideline and be really good in coverage. They’re playing high level football.”
▪ Cristobal said of safeties Fitzgerald and former Arizona player Isaiah Taylor (son of Jason Taylor): “Both those guys have worked their tails off and are going to play significant roles the rest of the season.”
▪ Cristobal said guard Samson Okunlola “is playing as good as anyone on our team.”
▪ Nickel cornerback Keionte Scott and safety Zechariah Poyser “were great additions,” Cristobal said. “They communicate really, really well. When they’re in the game, there’s a lot of confidence they will be in the right spot.”
▪ Asked about spitting incidents in the Eagles-Cowboys and USF-UF games over the past week, Cristobal says he talks to his players repeatedly about not losing their cool.
“I think we’ve seen probably a half a dozen examples where our guys have restrained themselves for the betterment of the team,” Cristobal said. “You saw in Game 1 how a receiver blocking his tail off gets his facemask yanked and pushed. One guy gets punched and he backed off.
“Another guy got there to grab before he [had a chance to retaliate]. Your best form of retaliation is to go have success on the next play. As long as we keep doing that, putting selfish penalties aside because now every single game we play is a playoff game — for everybody in college football.”
Cristobal said NFL scouts want players to keep their composure: “If you are a hothead, if you are easily mentally manipulated,” Cristobal said, “people are going to find you.”
The Canes have not had an unsportmanlike conduct penalty called against them in their first two games. Receiver Jacolby George, who was cut by the Carolina Panthers last month, had several called against him the past two seasons.
▪ Why is Rueben Bain playing with a brace on his left elbow? “The brace is just more a comfort thing; I don’t really need it,” he said Wednesday.
▪ In ESPN’s early top five positional draft rankings, Matt Miller and Field Yates have UM right tackle Francis Mauigoa as the third-best offensive tackle prospect, while ESPN’s Jordan Reid has him as the top guard prospect.
None of those three analysts rank Carson Beck among their top five quarterbacks or any UM running backs, receivers or tight ends among the five best draft-eligible players at their positions.
▪ Defensively, Reid ranks Bain as the second-best edge rusher. Miller has him sixth and Yates third. None of the analysts rank any UM cornerbacks, safeties, defensive tackles or linebackers in their top five among draft-eligible prospects.
▪ The CW Network (Channel 33 in South Florida) assigned Thom Brennaman and former NFL defensive back Will Blackmon to USF-at-UM, the network’s first game ever involving two ranked teams.
This story was originally published September 10, 2025 at 1:35 PM.
