The Miami Hurricanes needed a spark in the run game. They turned to a freshman
Miami Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal is pretty sure freshman running back Girard Pringle Jr. accomplished something rare in program history last week with the team’s 38-10 win over the Syracuse Orange.
“He was, ironically, a guy who was a scout team player of the week and was also a player of the game,” Cristobal said Monday. “That’s probably a first, and that had to be a strong mention today [during team meetings]. That’s a great lesson for coaches. Just keep developing your entire room and not just the top guys.”
Pringle had been down in the pecking order of Miami’s running backs, fourth at best behind Mark Fletcher Jr., CharMar “Marty” Brown and Jordan Lyle. During practice, Cristobal said he would bounce back and forth between taking reps with the scout team and the main offense, doing whatever was needed to help the Hurricanes win.
His persistence paid off on Saturday.
With Fletcher out with injury and the 18th-ranked Hurricanes looking for a spark in the run game, Pringle entered late in the third quarter — he has waited so long to make an impact; what’s another two-and-a-half quarters? — and made the most of his opportunities. He rushed for a team-high 55 yards and scored a touchdown to help Miami pull away from Syracuse.
“I was ready and prepared,” Pringle said. “When they told me to go in there, there were no second thoughts.”
Pringle’s first two carries set the tone for his outing. With about three minutes left in the third quarter, the running back took a handoff from quarterback Carson Beck, swept to his left and went up the field for an 11-yard gain. One play later, he did the exact same thing, this time using his speed and vision to break free for a 19-yard touchdown.
“He hits it,” offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson said. “He plays with a speed right now that we needed.”
Added Cristobal: “We all saw how explosive he was. It was one of the big reasons why we recruited him. We want to be more explosive in every capacity on offense. He showed that.”
And he showed the ability to bide his time and wait for his opportunities. All of his opportunities before this have come in garbage time, with the Hurricanes well ahead of the opponent and all the starters pulled.
He made the most of those reps — scoring three touchdowns in the three other games he has played in (Bethune-Cookman, USF and Stanford) — but wasn’t a determining factor in those matchups.
Saturday was a glimpse of what he can do in a larger role.
“Patience is key,” Pringle said. “I’ve been learning from the guys. They teach me patience as well. I just take it and run with it and then great things happen from there.”
And with Fletcher likely out again this week when Miami hosts NC State on Saturday (3:30 p.m., ESPN), look for Pringle to potentially get more opportunities as Miami tries to get a spark out of its run game. The Hurricanes are ranked tied for 76th nationally in rushing yards per game (151.56) and yards per carry (4.21). They have just five runs of at least 20 yards.
“We need to get more out of the run game,” Dawson said. “He came in and gave us a spark, and I think it’ll lift everybody up in that room.”
Pringle is one of several underclassmen stepping up in recent weeks as Miami deals with a rash of injuries.
Sophomore Joshisa Trader and freshmen Daylyn Upshaw and Joshua Moore have gotten more involved in the passing game with CJ Daniels missing the past two weeks. True freshman Malachi Toney has been leading the charge among wide receivers all season.
On the defensive line, sophomores Justin Scott and Armondo Blount as well as true freshmen Donta Simpson and Herbert Scroggins III have been rotating in more with defensive tackle Ahmad Moten Sr. sidelined.
Miami’s outside cornerback rotation all season has been a quartet of sophomores in OJ Frederique Jr., Xavier Lucas, Ethan O’Connor and Damari Brown. Frederique has been out the past two weeks, so the other three have taken on added snaps recently.
“It validates the word development, which nowadays is almost profanity because development takes time and development requires patience,” Cristobal said. “It screams opportunity for those that continue to seek it.”
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