Miami Hurricanes 2024 Preview | Full Depth Chart and Schedule Breakdowns

Intro/2023 Season Review what is up everybody welcome back here to the de YouTube channel we're back with our top 25 series we finally made it we've been drudging along we are in the top 10 and today we're talking Miami Hurricanes what are the Hurricanes going out there does Mario cristall got his guys ready yet we've been waiting he's been recruiting but the wins are not there we're going to be tying into all of their transportal because they went after the transporter especially that guy right there cam W as Christian knows I am a cam W closet truther uh I've liked cam word for a long time uh but before we get into that do we got to talk about last year sorry Kane's fans I know you don't you want to forget about last year the ne the nonne down the seven and six record but it was there right so Mario chrisal came there obviously to much Fan Fair the last couple years and they've expected more from him I think one thing that we've talked about about Mario chrisal is his he struggles a coach I think from like a recruiting standpoint does an excellent job but the X's and O's is really what you see with him um obviously led by Tyler van last year he was not good like um 2700 yards 19 touchdowns 12 interceptions from just a rushing standpoint not a lot of guys were healthy like they had Fletcher Paris Cheney and all those guys but no one really stood up and was their guy um they played a lot of games but they were banged up at different times not even that they just didn't produce I mean it was very by committee um they definitely had from a receiving standpoint obviously the big one Xavier wopo he's a he's the guy he kind of popped off last year Jobe George as well like they do have a receiving crew last year there but again seven and six weird losses that Georgia Tech lost probably looms the largest because then they lost they were going to go undefeated into North Carolina they did not lost in North Carolina North Carolina state Florida State Louisville and in the Ruckers in the pinstrip bowl and Ruckers is good I don't want to on Ruckers because Rucker fans would be after me they were pretty good last year but still like if you're in Miami you do not expect to lose the Ruckers in the pinstrip bowl I understand who was not there but those are the type of games that you really really need to win now heading into this 2024 Offense year though there's optimism for this offense right Christian's going to kind of dive into us and and last year when you think of the offense they were top 40 in points per game at 30.1 um yards per game they were top 30 as well at 418 yards rushing standpoint they were okay they needed to get a little bit better there like I mentioned kind of that three horse Back Field that they had um but rushing yards per game they were top 50 47 so it was it was close there but what they really need to do is get better uh in the passing game like overall their pass play percentage was there yards per pass was okay but they were middling like what they did is they really were aggressive in the trans portal go try to find a quarterback every quarterback that came up in the trans portal they went after and they finally got one after he flirted with the NFL and that's Cam war and they're expecting big things for him this year they are and it's a a massive upgrade well I say that but I also think that there's some level of like the 12 interceptions from Tyler van djk last year I wouldn't be shocked if Cam Ward matches that because he is a risky type of player but I think the risks that he's taking will also come with a lot more success so I I think it's going to be a worthwhile experience for Miami fans to watch this quarterback play instead of Tyler van djk um but really like this everything kind of starts with this offensive line and and really those two tackles you got two bookend tackles uh Francis Maui Goa from from last year he was fantastic uh as a as an underclassman Jaylen Rivers is a fantastic uh left tackle as well and then that interior played really well at times last year so uh you've got Xavier Restrepo in there to to be that starting slot receiver he's got legit NFL upside Kobe George has looked good at times and then transfer Samuel Brown I think brings a new Dynamic to this team you are losing Kobe young um that's we'll talk about that in a little bit but I think you've kind of it's equal when you bring in Samuel Brown who's a really really good player Elijah Royo should be healthy should be back to you know what we expected from him as a recruit and so this tight end room looks more like a Miami tight end room than I think it did last year so um and then I didn't even mention Damen Martinez coming over from Oregon State where I think it it's kind of Mark Fletcher insurance but also an upgrade Fletchers look good when when healthy but there's some concern about his overall health heading into this year Damen Martinez is a guy that you can turn give 20 25 carries and you can win a game that way and I don't necessarily know that they've had that at Miami for a little while here so I think they're in better shape this year than they were last year yeah Martinez ran for 1100 yards last year nine touchdowns and behind an offensive line of Oregon State that was kind of Patchwork not the best I mean they were fine they were okay out there Beaver fans but this line is much better like you talked about and I think that you could be really looking at a Damen Martine as like 1500 yard season I think he could do that if they give him enough volume um and yeah you hit on the head in terms of their offensive line Francis Francis was a you know All-American last year freshman All-American so that's one of their guys is get definitely going to be their Lynch pin and in cam Ward you know just to put up the numbers perspective for everybody out there he's thrown for 13,00 874 career yards and 119 touchdowns um with at Washington State and at incar Ward at the FCS school that he was at before he transferred to Washington State so dude can throw like dude's gonna toss it around and do those things um and he's definitely there you have to give him like credit for that but the one knock I have with Cam is that in in games where you're like man they can go out there and win this they know it never do like Washington State never did there was always an interception there was always that last drive that he couldn't put together and I think that's one thing that him and Chris Ball are gonna have to do together like you think of Chris Ball's big weakness too like they're going to have to overcome that together as far as the losses go on this squad Notable Losses Tyler van djk Kobe young obviously the running backs I talked about transfer out you have Henry Paris and Don cheny Tyler Harrell too um I man I remember Tyler har don't you remember great man there was people popping off Tyler Haro was the next Jameson Williams I'll never forget that those conversations out there I will say the big one to me is Kobe young 47 catches 500 yards five touchdowns last year um was more just that guy kind of leader on this this this roster um but like you said they replaced that not a lot of guys on this spot that I think they downgraded at I think that they're fine just from a recruiting and transfer portal status yeah I'd argue they upgraded their running back room despite you know losing those guys um wide receiver evens out quarterback upgrade I put Tyler Harold on here as the joke they did lose Matt Lee they're starting center from last year who was really good um but this is an offensive line that can overcome a loss like that in the middle there um but yeah I mean overall this isn't I think they've upgraded so I don't think that even these things that are notable losses they're not super notable for Miami not really all right let's get into recruits let's talk about it so 2024 Offensive Recruits from a 2024 recruiting standpoint number six overall Mario can recruit and that nil out there it's it's got some money yeah they they they spend it they throw the bag around a little bit composite rank is four and even transfer rank is top 10 they're able to do that really well really the guys that I love are the first three like if I'm gonna be honest JoJo Trader is a stud I love watching JoJo we wrote about him in the guy that we do um you know we're talking about coming in at 611 80 he is just a phenomenal athlete like just and he's got good Tempo too like from a route running perspective he is he's special like Jojo can make waves this year I I do think that he has an opportunity I know it's a crowded wide receiver room but they're gonna get in the ball I I really do think that I think he can play a z is slot area there he's going to create separation he's their big play guy he's got NFL upside Jordan ly as well he's coming in there as that four-star running back again he's he's just as good he he has that he has that ability to kind of be that game maker and a guy that kind of getting slept on Nik car he's really good too like the they did a really good job of filling those guys out and then when you go through the rest I mean Elijah lofton's getting a little buzz out there from the tight end room they're talking about him maybe being impact this year I know Josh Pate loves him um I've heard kind of 247 Sports guys really talking him up um and then you know they filled it out there but really those first probably five recruits there even Marquel Bell those six those are their guys they went after and really addressed that their needs yeah on top of all that I mean I love what they did with their offensive tackles uh took three offensive tackles from this class big old boys and we know chrisal can get really good production out of offensive lineman um that's one of his his strengths as a coach even if there are some faults in his coaching um just abilities that's one thing that he's really good at and then um just rounding it out with a nice little three star interior offensive lineman that I think can can rotate in if needed shouldn't be needed most of these guys are are down the road players but I do think Trader Whiley Carr could all find some time LOF in as well um to where we're talking about you know JoJo Trader being one of the best freshman wide receivers in the country I could very well see that happening this year yeah JoJo's really good like and you're watching him there and he was an athlete and he kind of switched over the wide receiver I don't think he's get enough Buzz out there among the Freshman you know hey who are these guys out there um he is he is a phenomenal phenomenal athlete and like we talked about with Key Offensive Transfers the transfers coming in they were top 10 here um they did a good job cam Ward Damen Martino Sam Brown ree pfin Barger uh I think that's how you say it if I mispronounce that I'm gonna get yelled at by Miami fans um but he comes Ino he's the U Albany a quarterback he threw for 36 touchdowns 3600 yards any more than any in the FCS quarterback range so like I do think if had they not cam got cam Ward Reese would have been right there with Emory Williams kind of going for it at that starting quarterback spot and Zack Carpenter as well um but you did mention Sam Brown I think he's a big part of this offense you know last year at Houston 62 catches 8115 yards and three touchdowns he was fun last year out there with Clayton tun in that area and he gives cam Ward another special athlete at the wide receiver position yeah this is a good group of transfers there's a reason like the entire recruiting class ranked really well but also their transfer class ranked really well um I think part of that is the top three players on this list right here yeah all right let's talk about their impact players so we Impact Players - Offense kind of got in these guys cam Damen Xavier Restrepo and Elijah Royo uh where do you lean who do you feel like is that guy for them this year and and really like they are ACC favorites you know they they are the team that they're looking at as like hey this could be the ACCC favorites of the conference so who do we want you know who do they need to really kind of Step Up for them I'm gonna cheat a little bit I think it's this cam Ward to Restrepo connection um because I think Restrepo has been good despite some inconsist in quarterback play I think cam Ward can unlock what Restrepo can do um you know I think that Restrepo is a bit Limited in what his ceiling actually is but I think within this offense and within uh the ACC specifically I think Restrepo can be one of the best receivers uh in in the the conference in the nation like there's there's a high probability that this connection is much better than anything that Restrepo has had and anything that Kim ward has had so I think combining those two I think that's going to be the driving force of this offense while I do Damen Martinez I I think this is a quarterback thing I I think we need to we need quarterback play they've had a good running attack even when they haven't had the big name guys I just think cam Ward coming in has to be the The X Factor for this team they're going to live and die by cam Ward's arm that's as simple as going to be they're going to live and die by that arm and those mistakes and if they can limit those mistakes and he can really kind of elevate himself into that category of like hey maybe NFL draft prospect you know first round guy in a class that's has a lot of question marks you're talking about Miami maybe going to the playoff again Miami the U is back we keep hearing that a lot you know could they be back it's up to cam W it's up to that arm and because he's got the offensive line he's got the weapons he's got a running back room especially with Dam Martinez being healthy that's right there it's up to cam that's really where it comes down to and from a defensive 2024 Defensive Breakdown side you know last year they were okay opponent points per game they are 24 point they put about 50th in in the nation um really they really where their strength lies is up front like that's where it lies in last year too um opponent rushing yards per game they're 15th in the nation just over a 100 yards average given up opponent yards per Rush only 3.5 they were 20th in the nation there where they struggled a little bit was on the back end especially in that secondary not terrible um but really kind of you know giving up opponent yards passing per game they're 55th in the nation um and in sack percentage they're 40th not bad they did get up to the football a little bit um but that's really kind of where they needed to kind of address they lost some guys in that secondary as well um but they got some dudes up front they got some guys that are a lot of fun to watch yeah Ruben Bane uh is the returner that I think is yeah he's really really good he's fun to watch uh but Tyler Baron coming over from Louisville is a huge get you needed someone opposite of Bane to really make this a formidable front for specifically and then they also got transfer Simeon Barrow who I think can be an impact player from the interior they lost a few pieces from that interior as well so I think to me they are the the tone Setters of this team but I also don't want to take away from Daryl Porter Jr who's a very very good Corner that I think with some better safety play this isn't well we'll talk about Cameron kinchin James Williams a little bit but they had up and down years I I think Miami fans would attest too kinins was expected to be much much better than he was last year and for whatever reason that the play was inconsistent I think with some improved safety play or at least some more consistent safety play Porter Jr can really sh sh on that outside that's an NFL guy as well um linebacking group is good but I think it's the front four and then you're hoping that darl Porter Jr is this Superstar Corner they can kind of take receivers out of games yeah no 100 perc I mean when you're looking at you know Ruben Bane to me a freshman all americ defensive end what he was able to put up on on the numbers last year you have to like that from just a numbers perspective like he he he came after it when you're looking at sacks and everything there um obviously seven and a half last year that was a big number um and they they returned both of their the their sack leaders from last year Bane and then Francis ma ma Goa I'm going to mess that up but Francis the middle linebacker there those two guys I mean they they had 15 sacks last year combined so you have to love that the guys that you're talking about leaving yes you know James Williams Cameron kitchens Cory couch Leonard Taylor also Notable Losses I was a big Leonard Taylor guy I like Leonard Taylor coming in he's a big boy last year um I don't know necessarily the thing is with these guys I don't know if they hit their ceiling last year very inconsistent I think all of them were a little Inc consistent when you're looking at just the tape and what you watched in the film and even Scouts they talked about a little bit too I mean you know Taylor had 19 tackles he had one sack like for for someone that you expect a little bit more from he he didn't give that 100% effort I think that's why you saw him slip a little bit um Williams and kit are fine but I think they were able to address those needs in the transfer portal for sure and Leonard Taylor was probably the most disappointing interor defensive line Prospect to watch last year just because of the expectations that were set so high uh but kinchin is right in that same ballpark where it's like man why didn't this team succeed a little bit more on the defensive side they had dudes Taylor never really put it all together and um you know I I hope the best for him at the NFL level same with all uh you know Williams kinchin all of these guys but um to me this isn't super notable if only because they were inconsistent last year I I think they've they're a net positive maybe just because of different guys in there that might run the scheme a little bit better give a little more effort things like that so I think they're in fine shape on defense and here's the thing like and and we keep going back to this a little bit that's up to coaching and that's where it always comes down with crystal ball like does he have the staff in place to get these guys ready to go they have talent like they have talent all throughout that list do they have that coaching to have that consistent hey this is where you got to be this is where the consistency needs to be this is how we need to attack this offense like that's the biggest question mark in my opinion because this this this team is riddled with five stars and talent transfer foral Talent all that it's down to coaching they got to step up and when you're looking at from just a recruiting standpoint on the defensive side Justin 2024 Defensive Recruits Scott is fun like Justin Scott when you're watching him out of Chicago they went to Chicago and got this kid 64 310 defensive tackle like w he's he's a big boy and when you're watching the tape he's just explosive like and and they went out and got him Maris light foot as well they they've been talking about this kid a lot in in basically in the spring I'm talking about over the summer 64212 Edge guy um again am BL blunt excuse me 63 250 big boys up front this is the class for the defensive side I thought they did a very very good job too zaquan Patterson again number four rated safety 6185 out there out of Florida like they attacked the defensive side you see the recruits that they got obviously a little bit more on the on the defensive side than it was on the offensive side but man a lot of talent in this room that's where that coaching comes to play if they can get these guys coached up you're looking at a Miami defense that could be special for the next three years yeah I mean a lot of uh highly rated recruits on this list but also some really good depth with those three stars um you know I watched some of the film on some of these guys like I think they might have found a few gems um I specifically liked Dylan day quite a bit but um you know we'll see how it all plays out it's really tough when you have a team like Miami who's gonna bring in four and five star safeties next year to to really stand out but to me this is taking shots at a ton of different positions on the defensive side too um and and really just saying like Hey we're going to be a Powerhouse in the ACC for as long as the ACC exists at least in this new college football World um and this is the way to do it through recruiting and Chris Ball like we've talked about does a fantastic job on that front and I don't think this year was any different they always have dudes that's the thing that Miami is gonna get these guys because the nil and Chris Ball does a great job there and just one last point about J Scott because I love my two-way players this last year he played DL and running back and he led his team to the quarterfinals and 8A playoffs which is a very like highly you know out there in Chicago so he played there and then in the playoffs he had 28 tackles two sacks and he had 120 yards and two touchdowns that's that's what he did in the playoffs so that the kid's going to go like that kid is an athlete and that's what you like there um they also addressed as you see the transfers this is where their transfer class Key Defensive Transfers really hit on the hit out there Tyler Baron as we talked about from Louisville um Simeon Barrow as well from Michigan State once they lost their coach you could see that 62252 diani Hill um from Marshall very very solid player Jaylen Alderman as well from Louisville they really just attack Louisville here Michelle pal is another guy that I was going to mention earlier but I wanted to wait too we got here 61204 from Washington he is a very very Stout like it looks like he's probably going to play niichel back probably in that in that role and they've been talking about him that he had a great he's he's gonna have a great camp and they talk about him being one of those guys beat reporters are like hey this kid can play back there I think that could sh up that secondary um Elijah Austin as well from Marshall Isaiah Taylor um from Arizona and then Marley cook they actually they grabbed Marley cook as well um from mid Tennessee state so very very solid class here yeah to say the least I mean the the fact that you got what four five potentially starters in the transfer portal that doesn't always happen like most of the time you're you're hitting a portal and you're hoping for like one to two starters a lot of these guys are projecting to start as we got through spring as we're getting into fall Camp these guys are standing out and so um Powell and Isaiah Taylor like I mentioned with James Williams and Cameron kin being um kind of you know disappointing at times last year you've got two new starters in your secondary at the very least with those two so great great transfer class Tyler Baron's the headliner but man if if this defense takes a step forward from last year uh the the ceiling of this team is pretty high oh yeah no it's playoffs I mean it Impact Players - Defense really could should be there um now as far as impact guys Daryl Porter Tyler Baron um Ruben Bane and then Francis Maui gowa dang it I know I messed that up my Miami fans getting mad at me there um but to me it's Ruben Bane I think that to me you know Chris Ball just came out recently in article and said he's going to be the one of the best players to ever go to the University of Miami that is one of that's a very high Accolade there um when you're looking at what he's able to do go after the football if he's as you know he had 12 and a half tackles for loss he had seven and a half sacks if he's that disruptor guy in that back field if Ruben ban is that guy then we're talking about just an absolute just dominant upfront defensive line for the Miami Hurricanes that can get after in ACC and go win a title like Ruben ban can be that game changer and I and and again with Tyler Baron to those guys could be pretty formidable yeah Bane is the headliner I put him third on this list as I typed it out uh just to to leave every every viewer with a little bit of suspense but yeah Bane to me looks like a potential top five pick in a couple of years already um and and just from The Freshman film now consistency is key he does still have areas to to work on of course but he like you mentioned the word disruptor it's a very good descriptive word of what his play style is I think we're going to see if we see him take a step forward I mean we're talking you know probably not like miles Garrett levels of like oh this kid is elite elite but like maybe just a step down and so he's going to be the driving force of this defense Baron opposite him is it's going to be just as important but man this uh this defense there could be like five more players on this list yeah um because they're they're loaded they are loaded on this side of the ball for sure it's hard because I'm buy I'm slowly buying into this we talk about over under and we talk about this lie here's their schedule so this is where they're at they're at 9 and a half um which is a little interesting but a lot of these teams in this 10 to like five range they're sitting up that nine and a half mark at Florida big game right there at Florida um versus Florida A&M versus Ball State at USF versus Virginia Tech at California at Louisville Florida State Duke Georgia Tech Wake for Syracuse not anything crazy right you you don't see Clemson on the list right we're not talking about that the Florida State Games at home that's a lot of fun there um really the tone is at Florida those two coaches Nate pier and Mario Chris Ball have like that's the game for them like stepping up the season how's this season gonna go like I really do feel that way um but when you're looking at nine and a half they could easily get to 10 like this is a 10- win team squad just from a talent perspective or 11- win team that's my thing I mean talent wise and quarterback wise I'm taking Miami over Florida pretty comfortably like I think Miami I don't know what the early line is on that game um I I don't have that in front of me but i' bet that Miami is at least a seven-point favorite in that game and they should be um it is on the road so maybe not but then when I start to look down the schedule like at Louisville is a really tough game I think um coming home to Florida State right after especially makes it even tougher because it's a bit of a look ahead type of game that said those are the only two games where I'm like man I think they could lose that game the rest of them like Georgia Texas is going to be Scrappy this year um but really they get Virginia Tech's going to be pretty Scrappy as well you I like USF a bit but man like I just see a lot of wins on this so I'm going over I'm hitting over I think this might be an 11- win team to be honest so the line is minus two and a half Miami that's what the line is right now and I think that's fair at on the road kind of a kind of a push I'm I'm sure because I'm sure uh well no it would be a push if Florida was two and a half pi Point favorites so add add a couple points and I'm pretty close with my seven points I think they should be seven point favorites I I would I I'm pretty comfortable when you look at this schedule saying cam Ward is the best quarterback in a lot of these games and when you go to college football to me that's really where I look at it like hey who's the best quarterback in these in these in these kind of games and even the Florida State game cam Ward is better than dju in my opinion I think as a quarterback he is better there so like I I I look at this and it's hard for me to go against that it really is and as a camw guy I'm gonna go over as well so the Doom the Doom we both picked over here um but like going into this when you look at the talent it's there it really comes down to cam W and crystal ball and and what does that coaching staff do there but when you're just looking at it overall I mean it's pretty easy for them to get those 10 wins I think they just can't screw up those games against like Georgia Tech or at California having to fly all the way across country in game middle of the week right and or excuse me middle of the Season then got go to at Louisville that's the tough like those are the things that are going be kind of tough for them but overall Chris Ball is Outro - Overall Outlook stacking that Talent there and if they can get back ACC is primed to get taken over by a team like when you're looking at the ACC right now we talked about Clemson already and how they don't use the portal we talked about kind of Florida state they're in flux right now at that quarterback position we talked about a lot of different things here in my opinion Miami has an opportunity to go out there and go go Miami use back right they can go get it like Chris Ball the talent everything is there Miami has a shot I think Miami has a chance this year to really solidify themselves as being that top three program in this conference and in maybe the future be like hey it's Miami Florida State again I mean unless FL St tries to leave which they are trying if Clemson's not going to address the portal Miami could run the ACC I don't think that's crazy to say as long as chrisal ball gets his is gets his stuff together as a head coach yeah this is uh 2024's version of Texas being back uh which finally happened last year um it's always been trending upward and they were just a few you know mishaps away last year and and I think probably a good quarterback away um but the six losses last year were pretty deceiving like they they played really well in a lot of those games um and so if they start to put it together they have more consistent quarterback play this looks like a 10 10 to 12 win team uh potentially and and they look like legitimate contenders I I fully understand why Ari put them in his top 10 uh on this list and and quite frankly as we get into the rest of them I I wouldn't be shocked if I would have Miami ranked ahead of some of those teams so high praise for for Miami I think this is a really good roster no way they can let us down come on Miami bring us back here bring us home all right that's our first top 10 team number 10 Miami we're working our way up through the rest but Miami fans let us know how confident you on crystal ball where do you feel like cam W's at and can you make it to the playoffs do you think you can go win that ACC because it probably going to have to win the ACC to get in the playoff depending on how many teams the Big 10 at SEC get in there so it's going to be really close so it's going to be that big game against Florida State so let us know what you think what are you guys going to finish um down there in the comments so appreciate you guys we'll check you guys on the next one [Music] [Music]