What we’re hearing on various players on offense as Hurricanes spring practice winds down
With UM’s sold-out noon Saturday spring game at Fort Lauderdale’s DRV PNK Stadium approaching, here are some Hurricanes spring practice observations about the offense from multiple people: a former player who has watched closed Canes practices and Saturday’s scrimmage (we’ll call him Player A), a couple of Canes coaches and WQAM UM radio analyst Don Bailey Jr.:
▪ Player A, who asked that his name not be used, said he would be surprised if Henry Parrish Jr. isn’t the starting running back this fall, that he offers the best combination of speed and power.
Don Chaney Jr. could give him a run for the job if he comes back strong this summer after last fall’s knee surgery.
“Parrish can run you over, make you miss,” the former player said. “Jaylan Knighton is undersized to be RB-1. I don’t want him to take that much of a pounding.”
Bailey also raved about Parrish: “I’ve been impressed with him every day at practice. He catches the ball well. Very intense runner. He runs bigger than he is [listed at 5-10, 190 pounds]. He has no problem in pass protection. He’s a phenomenal receiver. Can get outside” to the perimeter on rushing attempts.
Of the other two scholarship running backs available this spring, Player A said Thad Franklin has stood out ahead of Cody Brown: “Franklin has changed his body, lost the body fat. We’ve been horrible in short yardage. We need a big back to step up in short yardage, and he might be able to do that. He has soft hands.”
▪ Player A said he believes Elijah Arroyo is the front-runner to beat out Jaleel Skinner for the No. 2 tight end job behind Will Mallory because Arroyo’s body is more developed from being on campus for a year, and he’s more physically ready to play an in-line role and be an effective blocker. But he said Skinner has impressed — including during Saturday’s scrimmage — and expects him to play some.
“Skinner is that new era tight end, a bigger receiver [essentially],” Player A said. “He looks like he can contribute this year; nice hands, tall kid who’s big. I think they’ll find a role. You have to find a way to get him touches.”
▪ Player A said what stands out about receiver Jacolby George is the fluidity: “Silky smooth in his breaks. He looks like he can take a step as our next big-time playmaker. He has the speed to take it deep.”
George, Key’Shawn Smith and Xavier Restrepo have been primarily with the first team at wide receiver.
“Key’Shawn is the alpha dog,” Player A said. “He’s hopefully going to take the role replacing Charleston Rambo. I’ve loved what I’ve seen from Restrepo. He goes across the middle, makes hard catches in traffic, good after the catch, will run you over.”
As for the other receivers participating in spring ball, Player A said: “Daz Worsham has put on weight, looks good. I’m happy to see him more consistent, curious to see if he will break into the rotation...
[Clemson transfer] Frank Ladson is a bigger guy; able to go up and get it. We haven’t had a big receiver like that in a few years. But so far, he hasn’t made me say, ‘wow’ this spring. When was the last time you saw us throw a fade in the end zone? These bigger guys like [the 6-3] Ladson are specimens.
“Michael Redding is another guy highly touted, big body. He’s made some plays this spring.... Brashard Smith will be a mismatch against linebackers and safeties. You can see this staff getting the ball to him with end-arounds and other ways.”
▪ Bailey agrees with Player A on Restrepo: “Every practice when I’ve been there, he shows up every single day. He has turned himself into a deep threat. He’s not afraid to catch across the middle. If you ask me who’s been the most consistent receiver, it’s Xavier Restrepo.”
▪ Player A said offensive linemen Jakai Clark and DJ Scaife have been impressive.
And offensive coordinator Josh Gattis told WQAM’s Joe Zagacki that the offensive line ”group is being led by DJ. He’s doing an unbelievable job. The level of physicality and maturity, leadership [skills] he has... is tremendous.”
The two Oregon transfers — Jonathan Denis and Logan Sagapulo — will be serious contenders for interior line jobs, along with incumbent Jalen Rivers. Sagapulo is practicing fully; Denis hasn’t yet enrolled after committing to UM during the weekend; and Rivers has increased his workload and is doing some team drills off last year’s knee surgery.
Zion Nelson is the likely left tackle, but right tackle is wide open; Georgia five-star tackle Amarius Mims is in the transfer portal and is being pursued by UM and many others. As 247 Sports reported Tuesday, Miami is very much in the mix for Mims, as are FSU and potentially others.
Multiple backup linemen likely will exit the program this summer, with UM facing a numbers crunch on its roster.
▪ Player A on the quarterbacks: “With Tyler [Van Dyke], you see how confident he is in the huddle. Everyone looks at him as that leader, that you’re the guy. He has a little aura, has something different to him than the other guys.
“Jake Garcia makes all the throws. He’s getting comfortable with the playbook. He throws passes where you go, ‘wow’ but he’s a little inconsistent.
“[Freshman early enrollee] Jacurri Brown made a guy miss in the scrimmage Saturday and we’re like, “OK!’ Everybody compares him to a Baby Cam Newton. You can see inconsistencies with throwing but you also see the live arm to work with and the ability to make guys miss.”
▪ Quarterbacks coach Frank Ponce had some interesting perspective on his group, shared with WQAM’s Zagacki:
On Van Dyke: “We’re excited about everything he brings to the table. There are times we’re watching film and I say, ‘How did you see that [defender or coverage]?’ You can see he has been well schooled before we got here. I don’t know what [defenses] are going to do, but they’re going to have their hands full with him.
“Guys are going to try to mix coverages on him and get after him. We have to make sure they don’t get to him and that we have a variety of weapons and routes, short, medium and long so you don’t know where he’s going with the ball.”
On Garcia: “He has had a good camp. Jake has learned the offense as well, not as fast. He’s taking some strides lately. We expect a lot of great things from him. He’s doing extremely well.”
On Brown: “He’s like a gazelle. He glides. I tell him, ‘you don’t run, you glide.’ He sticks out like a sore thumb physically and the way he runs. A great young man, bright. We love what we see from Jacurri.”
This story was originally published April 12, 2022 at 5:52 PM.
