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THE DOWNLO w/MIDLO. Canes & college football stuff. 11/12/23

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The Miami Hurricanes cross-trained several players at different positions this offseason, and two of the moves made a lot of sense:

Keontra Smith — the No. 2 striker who also worked at linebacker in the spring — could be Miami’s best option at weak-side linebacker if Sam Brooks isn’t healthy.

Amari Carter — who started nine of 11 games at safety last season — could thrive at striker, where he worked in the spring. A move to striker also would allow Miami to create more playing time for young safeties Avantae Williams, James Williams, Keshawn Washington, Kamren Kinchens and Brian Balom behind potential starters Bubba Bolden and Gurvan Hall.

So the experimenting with those two players makes a lot of sense.

The move with receiver Mark Pope — having him play more in the slot and less on the boundary in the spring — is a more curious one. (UM radio analyst Don Bailey Jr. mentioned how Pope played far more in the slot this spring; UM coaches didn’t address the issue at length publicly.)

On paper, it makes a lot of sense, because Pope has the speed and short-area quickness to thrive in the slot.

But I’m curious how the playing time will be allocated if he settles in there.

Mike Harley Jr. was one of the Canes’ three best players last season — with D’Eriq King and Jaelan Phillips — and he’s going to get the bulk of the work in the slot.

Per Pro Football Focus, Harley had the most slot yards in 2020 of any receiver still playing college football. Last season, Harley had 728 of his 799 total receiving yards when lined up in the slot and scored seven touchdowns out of the slot.

That ranked seventh nationally, behind five players who have moved onto the NFL, including Alabama’s DeVonta Smith (863 slot yards) and Florida’s Kadarius Toney (784 yards) — two first-round picks.

Meanwhile, Xavier Restrepo — a natural in the slot — might have been UM’s most improved player on offense this spring. One UM staffer who attended spring practices said he absolutely warrants a role this season, because of his reliable hands, ability to get open and knack for picking up first downs.

So will Pope, the only remaining five-star upperclassman on the roster, get much playing time if he’s mostly working from the slot?

It’s quite possible UM could alternate three slot receivers because of the breakneck speed of Rhett Lashlee’s offense.

If Pope works primarily in the slot, that would create opportunities for impressive second-year receivers Keyshawn Smith and Michael Redding to challenge Dee Wiggins for the starting boundary spot opposite Charleston Rambo, the Oklahoma transfer and the front-runner to be the other starting outside receiver.

Pope has had an uneven career at UM, with drops continuing to haunt him, including six last season. His career numbers (52 catches, 680 yards, four touchdowns) are modest, but nobody would dispute that he’s talented, and we would be surprised if he doesn’t get regular playing time this season.

Pope’s skill set seems to lend itself to the slot, where college teams are looking for quick-twitch players who can convert short passes into long gains.

In 2020, Harley had 368 yards after the catch, which was sixth in YAC for FBS receivers out of the slot. Perhaps Pope could produce similar results if the offense is rolling and if given the chance.

But creating much playing time for him — should he warrant it — will be tricky if Harley and Restrepo are healthy.


▪ Former UM receivers Michael Irvin and Lamar Thomas and ex-UM center Brett Romberg are among Canes greats who have committed to being guest instructors at Saturday’s Paradise Camp.

Former UM All-American safety Bennie Blades is unable to attend this year because of a family funeral on Saturday but tells us that nephew Al Blades Jr. will be “OK” for the season after dealing with a heart issue last December (which coach Manny Diaz said resulted from COVID-19) and a stress fracture that sidelined him from spring ball.

▪ Lashlee, to ACC Network, on facing Alabama on Sept. 4 in Atlanta: “You don’t have a lot of margin for error in big games. I think the thing coach Diaz is trying to get across to our guys this offseason is that we still have a step to take in some of these big games and big moments. You come to the University of Miami to play in games like this. ... You get all summer to prepare for something and you know right out of the gates where you stand.”

▪ Pro Football Focus rates UM as the 18th-best team in the country, with a 1 percent chance to win the national title and 7 percent chance to win the Atlantic Coast Conference championship.

PFF adds this: “Our simulation results fit in well with the betting market expectation for the Hurricanes, who are tied for the 14th-shortest odds to win the national championship. They are tied with North Carolina for the second-shortest odds to win the ACC championship game, as Clemson is once again a heavy favorite despite a completely remade offense. It’s not a significant stretch to say that D’Eriq King could be the top returning quarterback in the conference due to a playmaking ability unmatched by anyone in the ACC. That is enough of a reason to buy into Miami in 2021.”
 
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The name for Amari Carter’s new position is appropriate: striker.

The Miami Hurricanes’ veteran defender has a knack for delivering the big hit, sometimes to his detriment; he has been ejected four times for targeting over the past two seasons.

After opting to return for a bonus season of eligibility, Carter is eager to curtail the targeting and make a smooth transition in his move from safety to striker.

“I love playing striker,” he told WQAM’s Joe Zagacki on Hurricane Hotline on Tuesday, his first public comments since the position switch. “I just love playing defense. As long as I’m able to contribute, I really don’t care [the position] as long as it’s beneficial to the team.

“I got thrown into striker in the spring and took it more as a challenge because I never played striker before. I took it as a challenge to learn the position. With every rep, I get more comfortable doing it. The technique we play, I played some of the techniques at safety. I feel comfortable. Just have to stay in the playbook and have a firm grasp of it.”

Carter, who started nine games at safety last season, will compete with Gilbert Frierson for the starting striker job, with Jalen Harrell and Chase Smith also playing the position.

Coach Manny Diaz said Carter still might be needed at safety at times. The move makes sense for reasons we explained here.

Carter — who has 92 tackles, three sacks, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries in four seasons at UM — is determined to avoid more ejections for targeting.

“It’s something I work on all the time,” he said of playing with the technique necessary to not be penalized for targeting. “This season it’s something I will have to keep in the back of my head to make sure I watch my pad level to keep my head out of everything. It’s something I have to continue to practice. I’ll get better at it. We won’t see it this season.”

New defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson said he has been “working on different techniques and safety precautions” with the goal of making sure Carter is “able to play the whole game. That’s something we talk to him all the time about: tackling, keeping his head up not only to protect the other player but also to protect himself.

“We can be just as physical as we always have been. But we’ve got to do it the right away. Under no circumstances are we going to tell a guy to [allow someone] to catch the ball in the middle of the field” to avoid a targeting penalty.

What’s clear is that UM’s safeties and strikers need to take away the ball more.

Carter had no interceptions last season and one in four years. Safety Gurvan Hall had none last season and one in three years. Safety Bubba Bolden had one last season and two in two years at UM.

Frierson had no interceptions last season and one in three years.

“That’s the goal in our room,” Carter said of snagging more interceptions. “We all emphasize getting our hands on the ball. It’s something we took some focus off of and need to back to that. Tips and overthrows, we have to have those.”

DECISIONS PENDING​


At least seven of the 36 players who took official visits to UM in June (and one who didn’t) are expected to select a college in the next few days, with UM among their finalists:

▪ Four-star Orlando-based defensive tackle Zane Durant plans to announce on Sunday and the Canes are considered the favorite over his other two finalists: Penn State and Indiana.

▪ Orlando-based three-star offensive tackle Leyton Nelson tentatively plans to announce on Sunday, picking from a final five of UM, UF, UCF, Duke and Utah. Miami has a chance but isn’t considered a favorite.

▪ Three-star Plantation American Heritage receiver Jacolby Spells plans to choose Sunday among UM, West Virginia and Indiana.

247Sports predicts there’s a 75 percent chance he ends up at UM, 25 percent chance he picks West Virginia. But Rivals makes the Mountaineers the favorite.

▪ Four-star Fort Myers based cornerback Chris Graves plans to announce on July 9, and 247 Sports makes UM the heavy favorite. LSU and South Carolina also remain in play.

▪ Four-star Georgia-based safety/striker Nick Cull intends to announce on July 12, and 247 Sports and Rivals make UM the strong favorite. Mississippi and UF are his other finalists.

▪ Four-star Tampa-based defensive end Mario Eugenio told Canesport that UM, Oregon, Ohio State and Michigan are his finalists and will announce his pick Monday on Instagram. But he hasn’t stepped foot on UM’s campus since his sophomore season, and the Canes are viewed as a long shot.

▪ Demario Tolan, the four-star outside linebacker/striker from Orlando, will announce July 8 and has a final five of Miami, LSU, FSU, Tennessee and Clemson. 247 Sports said “the Hurricanes are in a good spot, but they will have to battle out Clemson and LSU.”
 

▪ Wide receiver Mike Harley Jr. transformed himself into one of UM’s five best players last season.

And he revealed recently that former Alabama receiver and Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith provided some measure of inspiration along the way.

Harley told WQAM’s Joe Zagacki that he was sitting in his hotel room watching TV the night before the Clemson game last season.

“DeVonta Smith had a commercial pop up saying he caught 100 balls after practice, 100 on the Jugs [machine],” Harley said. “I said [to myself], ‘I’ve got to step it up.’ ”

Harley said he then got down on his knees, alone, and prayed for 10 to 15 minutes.

“I was having a one-on-one conversation with [myself]” and thinking about “changing things, taking advantage of things.”

Harley decided that he, like Smith, should start spending time after practice catching passes from a machine “and not acting like I know everything.” Early in the season, “I was overlooking everything. That was my downfall.”

Two weeks after that Clemson game, Harley caught 10 passes for 170 yards and a touchdown against Virginia, then followed that up in UM’s next game with eight receptions for 153 yards and two touchdowns at North Carolina State.

“Everything started to turn around,” he said.

He continued to play well over the final month and finished the season with 57 receptions for 799 yards (a 14.0 average) and seven touchdowns.

The coaching staff loves Harley’s work ethic. Coach Manny Diaz said last week that Harley “is almost like an assistant strength coach, the effort he puts in, the way he works.”

Harley was asked by Zagacki if he needs to make adjustments because he’s on opposing scouting reports now.

“I made an impact so I guess I’m a guy on the scouting report,” he said. “Me winning starts in the film room” and observing nuances and tendencies of opposing defensive backs that he can apply in a game.

Harley said the offense has “a lot of depth I’ve never seen at the university before. If we get rolling, we can put up great numbers and be No. 1 in the country.”

Is he thinking about the Alabama opener Sept. 4 in Atlanta?

“They cross my mind every now and then,” he said.

Fanduel is listing Alabama as a 17-point favorite in that game.


▪ Several Hurricanes agreed to contracts during the first two days under new NCAA (and state) rules that permit college athletes to benefit from their name, image and likeness.

Besides D’Eriq King’s four deals detailed here, several other Hurricanes players have lined up contracts. Among them:

Safety Bubba Bolden will pocket $20,000 for sponsorship deals with two Tampa-based companies that also are using King: College Hunks Hauling Junk & Moving and Murphy Auto Group.

Harley announced a deal with College Football Edits, a website that designs posts for college athletes.

Freshman offensive lineman Michael McLaughlin and second-year linebacker Tirek Austin-Cave have been promoting Gopuff, a food delivery service.

And King is launching a podcast with roommate Ryan Ragone, a former walk-on linebacker who’s now on scholarship and received some playing time last season. They will seek paid sponsorships for their podcast, the “King and Ragone Show,” which will debut later this month and focus on football, business and other topics that interest them.

Ragone’s deal was handled by Adam Arnaout, a former University of Miami center who’s now an NIL Florida attorney and the founder of Arnaout Entertainment & Athletics.

Former UM players — such as Arnaout (who graduated UM’s law school) and erstwhile receiver Ahmmon Richards — are taking an active role in helping players navigate through the new NIL landscape.


▪ Tight end Will Mallory succinctly expressed why everyone on the team has such respect for King, who’s making his way back from a torn ACL.

“He’s a professional in everything he does,” Mallory told WQAM. “He’s working so hard every day. It pushes everyone around him to want to be better. The way he carries himself and how he approaches every day is awesome to watch and motivates others. What better guy than to be our starting quarterback and leader of the team? He represents how it’s supposed to be done every single day.”

King told me this week that he will be ready for the Sept. 4 opener against Alabama.

▪ The next step for UM’s offense?

“Consistency,” Mallory said. “You guys saw last year that when we were really good, we were really good. And then there were times we missed opportunities we needed. This offseason, a lot of guys have taken pride ... in learning the offense, fixing the little things we needed to.”

Mallory assessed the young quarterbacks this way: With Tyler Van Dyke: “I know how talented he is. I’m excited for his future.”

And Jake Garcia? ”Everyone was impressed with the skills he brings to the table. Miami is in good hands with quarterbacks for years to come.”

▪ A few more notes from Diaz:

On the proposal for an expanded playoffs (now likely by 2026), Diaz said: “On the surface, a 12-team playoff is really good for college football. ... Anything that makes college football more inclusive is a good thing for the sport. Having 12 teams allows bowls to continue to exist. But there are a lot of other details that have to be worked out on how to make that thing fly.“...

Diaz said “this spring was the first time we felt we had the depth to create the pure competition on that field where the guys really had to compete at a high level every day just to keep their jobs. ... We can speak all day about the great things Alabama has done in the last few years. But we’re worried about Miami.”

▪ Adam Gorney, Rivals’ national recruiting director, on UM oral commitment and four-star Mississippi cornerback Khamauri Rogers: “This was a massive win for the Hurricanes because Rogers is so close to Ole Miss position coach Terrell Buckley. Miami has had some big-time stars at defensive back, and Rogers has that kind of potential.”
 
RVACane said:
He’s supported us before
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Yeah, still recall him picking Miami and Notre Dame to meet for the 2006 national championship—months after LSU demolished the Canes in the Peach Bowl, 40-3.

Miami went on to lose the opener to FSU, got waxed at Louisville (31-7) two weeks later, had an on-field brawl with FIU mid-October, almost lost at Duke the following week and then dropped four straight—Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Marlyand and Virginia—before needing a home finale win over Boston College just to make a bowl game.

Shipped off to Boise's blue turf to eke out a one-point win over Nevada for a 7-6 season which saw Larry Coker canned like tuna.

Great call, Kirk.
 
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Midlo Cane Fan said:
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Pray Euro 2012 GIF by UEFA
 
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