Why Keionte Scott slept at UM’s practice facility in fall camp. And Fiesta Bowl injury news
Keionte Scott didn’t want to leave the Miami Hurricanes’ indoor practice facility.
So, during fall camp, he didn’t.
Scott, a transfer from Auburn who has gone on to have a breakout season as the Hurricanes’ nickel cornerback, said Sunday that he and two freshmen — wide receivers Malachi Toney and Daylyn Upshaw — slept in the practice facility every day during Miami’s fall practice regiment.
“For me, it was just to be in the moment,” Scott said, as the No. 10 Hurricanes prepare to play the No 6 Ole Miss Rebels in the Fiesta Bowl, a College Football Playoff semifinal, on Thursday at State Farm Arena in Glendale, Arizona. “Sleeping in this thing was definitely different. Looking up at the banners and all the legends that came before me, that was just something I wanted to do. Just take the time to hone in and focus and be where everybody was. Look up and you see Ed Reed and different names; it was something I just wanted to take in.”
Scott slept solo at the facility on the first night. After word got out that he did it, Toney and Upshaw wanted to join in, too.
“Once they found out I was doing that,” Scott said, “it was something they were attracted to. Two young guys who wanted the best out of their careers.”
So what, exactly, would the three do on a nightly basis?
“We wake up, handle our work, and at the end of the day, get some time, go watch some film,” said Scott, who is among Miami’s team leaders in tackles (58), tackles for loss (13) and sacks (five) while also having two interceptions returned for touchdown this season despite missing Miami’s final three regular-season games with a foot injury. “You’re just in the facility. You’re practicing all day. There’s really no point in going home. So I just found something, a routine to just have fun. There would be days where Daylyn would be not too tired, so he would run laps in the IPF just trying to get tired before he went to bed. It was a super fun moment to be there and watch them. Got a chance to just explain all my trials and tribulations to them while we were in here and how things change super fast. Just always stay focused on what they can control and just different things. Just picking their brains. They picked my brain. We were just going at it.”
The camaraderie was something Scott wanted to build team-wide once he got to campus. He wanted to “talk to everybody, shake everybody’s hands.
“You never know who is having a bad day or anything going on,” Scott said, “so I just want to be one of those guys, just speaking to everybody. Make sure everybody’s having a good day.”
Injury updates
The Hurricanes received a bit of good news on the injury front.
Cornerback OJ Frederique Jr., who was injured in the third quarter of Miami’s Cotton Bowl win over Ohio State last week and was seen postgame on crutches and in a walking boot, was not listed on the Fiesta Bowl’s availability report Tuesday. That signals that he should be available for Thursday’s game against Ole Miss.
Meanwhile, fellow cornerback Damari Brown and defensive tackle Ahmad Moten Sr. are listed as questionable for the game.
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