Linebackers out to be backbone of new-look front
CORAL GABLES — Two springs ago, Shaquille Quarterman, Michael Pinckney and Zach McCloud were trying to make the quick adjustment to college football.
As early enrollee freshmen working their way through spring drills, they were looking to keep pace, impress their coaches and work their way into potential starting jobs.
Months later, the trio made history, becoming the first group of true freshmen to start at linebacker for the Hurricanes.
These days, as the veterans of Miami’s defense, the group is being called on to provide more than big hits between the lines.
With the Hurricanes’ defensive line undergoing massive changes after the graduations of Chad Thomas and Trent Harris and the departures of RJ McIntosh and Kendrick Norton — both of whom opted to bypass their senior years to enter the NFL draft — Miami defensive coordinator Manny Diaz is counting on his group of veteran linebackers to give the Hurricanes stability and strength up front.
“It’s really big. They can help [the defensive linemen] in terms of pre-snap, getting aligned, what plays to expect, that type of stuff,” Diaz said of Quarterman, Pinckney and McCloud. “They have gone from being the young guys on the defense to now being the elder statesmen and we’ll expect a lot from them because of that.”
Miami’s linebackers say they’re eager to rise to that challenge, McCloud noting on Thursday he’s focused on trying to play faster, improving on his coverages and improve on his tackling.
Meanwhile, Quarterman — who was second on the defense with 83 tackles — is embracing his role as one of the team’s vocal leaders.
“That’s my job. That’s everybody’s job, to help everybody come to where they need to be,” Quarterman said. “We have [defensive tackle] Jon Ford, we have [Gerald Willis] coming back and even with G coming back, everybody has to get acclimated to how we play this game because we play different than a lot of teams. We’re just going to grind it out, every day, day in and day out. We can’t let each other slack. We just have to hold each other accountable.”
As the Hurricanes move through spring practice, though, Diaz made it clear on Thursday he isn’t just looking for his veterans to do the heavy lifting.
Miami’s younger linebackers, including Waynmon Steed, De’Andre Wilder and Bradley Jennings Jr., will be asked to provide depth and, Diaz hopes, push the veterans, particularly as they gain more experience themselves.
“Waynmon [Steed] has been impressive. He has the instinct to make quick decisions at linebacker. Probably gives us a dynamic more similar to [Michael] Pinckney, which we really, other than Mike, didn’t really have on our roster,” Diaz said. “And Bradley Jennings as well. Those two guys right now, they still make some young, inexperienced mistakes. But in terms of linebacker instinct and linebacker play, both of those guys are pretty advanced given their overall level of experience … Linebacker play is linebacker play. A guy that understands how to stay square and take on blocks well and shed blocks and fill gaps and make plays, there’s a natural respect in the room that comes from that. So I think even our older guys can see the younger guys can do some of those things and that helps them.”
Jackson to state case
Cornerback Michael Jackson, who along with safety Jaquan Johnson had a team-high four interceptions in 2017, said Thursday that while he briefly entertained the idea of entering the NFL draft, he ultimately decided to return to Miami for one major reason.
“Just to prove that last year wasn’t a fluke,” Jackson said with a smile. “I talked to Jaquan, I talked to [Sheldrick] Redwine…Redwine was the biggest recruiter. The biggest recruiter, no matter what. No matter if we were in study hall or anything, he was like, ‘Mike, come back. Mike, come back.’ So it’s just talking to these guys. We came in together, so I want to go out together.”
Ready to hit
After two acclimatization days in shorts, the Hurricanes are expected to don pads for Saturday’s practice and it’s then, players and coaches say, where competition will start to get interesting.
“Everybody kind of has a vague sense of what to do and now we’ll see who enjoys running into other people,” Diaz said.
Added defensive end Joe Jackson, “We are excited to get in pads, we can really hit. Get-off [non-contact] is a real challenge. We’re always ready to hit but, you know, you got to through these first two days tagging off. You’re itching, you’re itching. We try not to hurt our teammates, so we just try to keep it cool and tag off.”