Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Richt says ’Canes will need time to gel
HOLLYWOOD — They have yet to name a starting quarterback. Their running back depth is shaky at best, scary at worst. And there are questions about how some new faces will perform for a defensive backfield in transition.
Still, the Miami football team is coming off one of its best years in recent memory.
The Hurricanes posted a 9-4 record during coach Mark Richt’s first season in Coral Gables, capped by their first bowl win in a decade, a 31-14 victory over West Virginia in the Russell Athletic Bowl.
With numerous playmakers returning from that team — particularly on the defensive front — expectations are that Miami could start the season a ranked team. The coach couldn’t help but smile at the idea, but he knows it’s going to take time for the Hurricanes to truly know who they are.
“We all know preseason rankings don’t mean a whole lot. If you go maybe six games into the season and start ranking people, you might have a better feel of where everybody is and a lot better feel of where we’ll be at the quarterback position,” Richt said Tuesday while taking a break from his youth football camp at the Hollywood Police Athletic League. “But, I think we’ve got a lot of guys that understand what we’re doing, why we’re doing it and how we’re doing it.
“We’re getting a lot of great leadership this summer. … There’s more player involvement and self-policing of things off the field. That’s where you want to be. I think we have the chance to be a very good team.”
Two of the areas Richt already sees as strengths for his team are the defensive line and linebacker spots, where the Hurricanes will return linemen Chad Thomas, Joe Jackson, Demetrius Jackson, RJ McIntosh, Kendrick Norton and Anthony Moten, as well as Shaq Quarterman, Zach McCloud and Mike Pinckney.
Richt also noted Tuesday he’s been pleased with the progress he’s seen from Miami’s receiving corps.
Early last season, he bemoaned the unit’s need for speed and size there, but there’s been improvement on that front with the breakout performance of freshman Ahmmon Richards (Wellington) and the arrivals of freshmen DeeJay Dallas, Mike Harley of St. Thomas Aquinas and Jeff Thomas. Redshirt sophomore Lawrence Cager, who missed last all of 2016 with a knee injury, is expected back in time for camp and senior Braxton Berrios has emerged not only as one of the more vocal offseason leaders, Richt said, but as the team’s best route-runner.
Richt also noted Dayall Harris and Dionte Mullins could have an impact.
But at running back, the Hurricanes had just two healthy scholarship players — Mark Walton and Travis Homer — participating by the end of spring workouts, with Trayone Gray still recovering from a knee injury and freshman Robert Burns nursing a shoulder injury that sidelined him early in practice.
That prompted Richt to turn to Twitter in his efforts to try to land a graduate transfer who could provide immediate help. Tuesday, he said the Hurricanes still haven’t added anyone to help ease the workload on Miami’s backs and reiterated he’s still open to the idea of bringing in a graduate transfer, presuming it would be a relationship that would work for both the player and the program.
“If there’s a great one at really just about any position, we’d look into it because the reality of a grad transfer is they can come in, they have maturity, they can help your team and in the recruiting process, they don’t keep you from bringing a midyear player in. So if you have space on your roster to bring in a graduate transfer, it can really only help your team,” Richt said. “The thing that I want is guys that really want to be part of the fabric of our team and not just coming in for [their] personal gain. I want guys that will embrace ‘The U’ and then on the other hand, I don’t want to bring a guy in strictly for depth and peace of mind when there’s goals he has.
“I’m not going to give a guy a bunch of junk to say, come in and then he gets here and he finds out he’s a glorified insurance policy. I don’t want to do that to a kid. If we bring someone in, our thoughts are that that guy can come in and help us win right away.”
A few more personnel notes from Richt on Tuesday:
He said Miami remains uncertain who will fill the void left after the graduation of punter Justin Vogel, who was a second-team AllACC selection after averaging 43.8 yards last season. Former Florida punter Jack Spicer transferred to Miami and participated in spring workouts, but struggled at times. Freshman signee Zach Feagles is expected on campus next month.
After losing first-round tight end David Njoku, Richt said the Hurricanes will have work to do at the position this fall. Tight end Chris Herndon has emerged as the leader in the group that also includes former St. Thomas standout Michael Irvin II and freshman Brian Polendey.
“Well, they’ve got a ways to go. … I think there’s a pretty good little dropoff between Herndon and the next guy,” Richt said. “I think those guys are learning and getting better. But Herndon is leading the pack by a pretty good margin.”
Not long after Richt’s appearance in Hollywood, Miami announced tight end Jovani Haskins, who redshirted last season, is transferring.