Feedback, buzz at every position on the Miami Hurricanes’ roster heading into opener
Less than a week from the opener against Alabama, feedback we’re hearing — by position — from a UM front-office staffer, players and their close associates on the roster, as well as several comments from UM coaches on Monday:
▪ Quarterback: We’re told D’Eriq King has looked great throughout camp; one source said there hasn’t been a single time he has appeared at all diminished by last December’s torn ACL.
UM has left unresolved the backup quarterback competition and will keep it open all season.
My sense is that Tyler Van Dyke is more likely than Jake Garcia to be the No 2, but UM people say both have been impressive throughout camp. Van Dyke, for the most part, has been consistently accurate. Garcia has more mobility. That should be a terrific 2022 competition after King departs.
▪ Running back: Cam’Ron Harris was named the starter Monday, and we’re told he had a very solid camp. Some believe Don Chaney Jr. has the highest ceiling as an every-down back because of his speed and power, but that he has had bad luck staying healthy. Those two should get the bulk of the carries against Alabama, health permitting.
Jaylon Knighton — listed as an either/or with Chaney on the second team — has looked great at times in camp and is the most dangerous weapon on screens, but his availability for the opener is unknown.
Of the two freshmen backs (Cody Brown, Thaddius Franklin), I’ve heard more favorable feedback on Brown, who was described as a hard-nosed, tough runner though not a game-breaker. Franklin moped after a recent fumble.
▪ Tight end: Though there are durability questions with Will Mallory, the UM staffer said there’s no reason he shouldn’t be able to catch 60 passes.
The consensus is freshman Elijah Arroyo is the most impressive of the backups, and his listing as No. 2 on the depth chart reaffirmed that. Throughout camp, he has caught the ball cleanly and run over people. There’s not a lot of finesse to his game (in a good way). Offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee said he has “a lot of confidence” to play Mallory and Arroyo together.
Freshman tight end Khalil Brantley has flashed, making multiple acrobatic catches in camp. Dominic Mammerelli, a blocking specialist, is sidelined for the opener because of injury. Lashlee has spoken highly of Larry Hodges’ upside, but he must prove reliable.
▪ Wide receiver: We reported on Sunday - in the print edition of the Herald — that the top six are expected to be — no surprise — Key’Shawn Smith (a revelation in camp), Charleston Rambo, Mike Harley Jr. and Xavier Restrepo, with Michael Redding and Dee Wiggins in the fifth and sixth slots but trying to hold off impressive freshmen Jacolby George, Romello Brinson and Breshard Smith.
Monday’s depth chart had Smith, Rambo and Harley as the starters and Restrepo, Redding and Wiggins as the backups. Lashlee said he regards all of those six as co-starters and all will play against Alabama.
But the freshmen will keep pushing Redding and Wiggins. George was exceptional early in camp, and Brinson has displayed a knack for rising in the air to make difficult catches.
Mark Pope — somewhere between 7 and 10 on the depth chart — could get some work but remains inconsistent. As we reported months ago, he’s now working in the slot, behind Harley and Restrepo.
Pope and Wiggins have been hampered by drops throughout their careers, but Wiggins made a spectacular one-handed catch last week and has been steady in camp, solidifying his spot in the top six.
UM sees Key’Shawn Smith as a potentially special player; he’s a complete receiver — fast and physical — who can beat cornerbacks in multiple ways. The UM staffer said he gives the Canes a dimension they didn’t have last season.
UM believes the muscular and talented Redding also should be able to out-physical cornerbacks, including in the red zone.
The feedback on Restrepo is that there’s nobody on the roster with a better knack for getting open. “He’s not the fastest, but he’s a guy that can convert third downs,” the UM front office person said.
Rambo has had a solid camp. UM people aren’t giving up on second-year receiver Daz Worsham.
▪ Offensive line: The UM front-office person said the group — from left to right — of Zion Nelson, Jalen Rivers, Corey Gaynor, Navaughn Donaldson and Jarrid Williams — should be UM’s best line in years. Donaldson has been great in camp, and UM believes Rivers will be a very good four-year starter.
UM feels good about its first three off the bench: DJ Scaife, Justice Oluwaseun and Jakai Clark (working his way back from a car accident).
Kai-Leon Herbert, Ousman Traore and Cleveland Reed are likely ninth to 11th in some order. John Campbell is out for the year with a knee injury.
▪ Defensive end: The concern conveyed here is the lack of a special talent such as Greg Rousseau or Jaelan Phillips.
Deandre Johnson is experienced and physical and UM expects a consistent pass rush, but it was interesting that he was listed second team behind Jahfari Harvey at one end spot. Many presumed he would be a starter after transferring from Tennessee in the spring.
Diaz said there won’t be a big difference in snap counts between Harvey and Johnson during games and noted Harvey simply got more reps this offseason because of Johnson’s injury in the spring.
“Jahfari has gotten a lot bigger and stronger, always had had great quickness and get-off,” Diaz said.
Zach McCloud is the other first-team end — with Chantz Williams behind him — and the Canes believe McCloud’s intelligence, the fact he will competing against younger players and his enviable length will make him an effective rotational end. Diaz said McCloud is playing the best football of his career.
Chantz Williams has impressed everyone in camp — he’s strong and has a good get-off on pass rush moves. Defensive line coach Jess Simpson suggested Williams and McCloud will play comparable snaps.
▪ Defensive tackle: UM people are hoping this is the year that Nesta Silvera and Jon Ford finally reach their high ceiling. Ford is in very good shape; Silvera has missed time in camp with an injury. At least one of those two — if not both — will start; Jared Harrison-Hunte was identified on the depth chart as the other possible starter for one of the two starting tackle jobs.
UM people rave about how Jordan Miller has reshaped his body and improved.
UM people say it’s inevitable that five-star freshman Leonard Taylor will get snaps this season; besides his brute strength and natural gifts, UM people rave about his motor and effort. But he’s not on the initial two-deep.
“His busts and mental errors have dropped each practice,” Simpson said of Taylor. “He’s playing arguably the deepest position on our team in defensive tackle. Over the course of the season, I would be shocked if his role didn’t grow. His athleticism, his strength, he’s got special attributes for sure.”
And Simpson said Elijah Roberts “has shown some really good stuff in the rush game and could help us.”
▪ Linebacker: The Hurricanes — in this modern pass-heavy game — are prioritizing speed over size, and that’s largely why Corey Flagg and Keontra Smith are starting.
“We need linebackers to cover ground, and Keontra can do that,” the UM front office staffer said in my Herald print piece that ran Sunday.
And Diaz said: “We’re noticeably faster than we were a year ago” at linebacker and that Smith “can cover a lot of space” and Flagg has “short-area quickness.”
UM believes Waymon Steed also runs well despite his history of knee issues. He’s second-team at will linebacker, with Bradley Jennings Jr. the top backup behind Flagg at middle linebacker.
We’re told that Sam Brooks hasn’t looked like his old self after spring’s toe injury. Brooks is out for the opener.
▪ Striker: UM believes the position is in good hands with Gilbert Frierson and former safety Amari Carter. Carter was named the starter, but both will play.
The feedback on Carter is that striker better serves him; he can be a punishing tackler in the box without being vulnerable to as many targeting penalties.
At times, you might see Carter, Keontra Smith and Frierson play together with five defensive backs, giving UM eight players who can cover.
“Carter is going to have to play some safety for us as well,” Diaz said.
▪ Safety: Gurvan Hall and Bubba Bolden have had a steady but not spectacular camp; they’re the starters as expected.
UM expects James Williams, Kamren Kinchens and Keyshawn Washington will push them this year. And Carter is available to play safety, of course.
Brian Balom, the No. 3 safety earlier in camp, is out for the year with an undisclosed injury.
▪ Cornerback: There’s a clear top three, in no particular order, of Te’Cory Couch, DJ Ivey and Tyrique Stevenson. Two of them will start.
UM believes Stevenson — who’s a physical corner — can help outside and on the boundary, but Couch and Ivey often have played ahead of him when UM has two corners on the field. All three will play a lot.
We’re told Couch has had a very good camp and become stronger physically after being victimized repeatedly in the bowl game against Oklahoma State. Ivey has been solid all month.
Al Blades Jr. — returning from a spring stress fracture — is fourth, ahead of Isaiah Dunson, who has flashed.
▪ Special teams: Freshman kicker Andres Borregales has been very good — he hit a 53-yarder last week. Some UM people believe he could be another Carlos Huerta.
UM believes Restrepo — who fumbled a couple punts last season — will be better as a returner; he and Mike Harley Jr. are co-No. 1 kickoff returners, per UM.
Stevenson - for now - has won the punt return job, with Restrepo behind him.
This story was originally published August 30, 2021 at 2:10 PM.
