Canes Football Players to Watch: Offense
By David Villavicencio
HurricaneSports.com
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Miami’s defense gets most of the attention thanks to the presence of stars like Shaquille Quarterman, Jaquan Johnson and Michael Jackson, but the Canes’ offense is filled with talented players ready for a big season in 2018.
Malik Rosier, Travis Homer and Ahmmon Richards are key returning playmakers for the Hurricanes, but they are just the beginning of players to watch on offense this season.
After looking at the defensive players ready to make an impact in 2018, here are several Canes in position for a big year offensively.
QUARTERBACK
12 | Malik Rosier | Redshirt Senior | 6-1 | 212
Rosier is back for his second season as Miami’s starting quarterback and he will look to build off his 10-win debut season at the helm of the Canes’ attack. The redshirt senior returns after setting the single-season “touchdowns responsible for” record at Miami with 31 – besting Vinny Testaverde’s record of 30, set in 1986 – a year he won the Heisman Trophy. A dual-threat quarterback, Rosier added 468 rushing yards to help set the single-season total offense record at Miami (3,588) in his first year as a starter.
Even with all of his success in 2017, Rosier spent all spring and summer working to improve ahead of the upcoming season. He specifically focused on improving his accuracy and his vision, but his teammates have seen an overall improved version of Rosier in camp.
“You know, I am his roommate too, so I get to see it at home,” Homer said. “He is always in his books, trying to get everything down. It’s showing on the field right now. I see him talking a lot more, bringing that energy. He’s completing more passes. He’s just coming out with that fire.”
“The difference I see in Malik is he’s being a leader now,” wide receiver Mike Harley said. “He’s getting the offense together. He is very consistent so far. It’s day four or day five – I’m tired, so I lose track. But he has been a very great quarterback. He’s a leader now.”
RUNNING BACK
24 | Travis Homer | Junior | 5-11 | 205
13 | DeeJay Dallas | Sophomore | 5-10 | 220
32 | Trayone Gray | Redshirt Senior | 6-2 | 240
Homer blossomed after taking over as the starter a year ago following an injury to Mark Walton, rushing for 966 yards on 163 attempts, averaging 5.9 yards per carry and finishing with eight rushing touchdowns on his way to earning an All-ACC Second Team selection in 2017.
Dallas also stepped up after moving from wide receiver to running back following Walton’s injury, using his athleticism and versatility to rush for 217 yards and three touchdowns behind Homer. Fully focused on running back in 2018, Dallas could be an important and versatile weapon for Miami’s offense. But Gray is the biggest surprise in the running back room, moving to fullback in the spring and climbing to No. 3 on the depth chart in fall camp.
“I’m so proud of that dude,” offensive coordinator Thomas Brown said of Gray. “I said it [at Media Day], his development not just as a player, but as a person – what he’s done off the field, being more responsible, being accountable. He has always been a very talented guy – super fast, straight ahead [runner], very strong. He’s limited some east and west [running]-wise, but we kind of work around that. But his maturity level has come along so fast this past spring and summer. I’m really excited about what he’s doing.”
Gray’s ability to play both fullback and running back excite Brown, while his experience and maturity will help him mentor a stable of talented young running backs.
“I think it’s huge,” Brown said of Gray’s ability to play both positions. “Obviously you have a guy who has played some – not a whole lot throughout his career, but at least has been around the program and been in our system. He knows what we kind of expect from a coaching staff standpoint. The effort every single day, the accountability every single day, is huge to have in that room – especially when you have new guys who just got here with Cam [Davis], Lorenzo [Lingard] and Realus [George]. The more guys we have in that room who can help lead those guys when I’m not around, the better off we’ll be. So I think the fact that he was not hesitant to move when I asked him to move, didn’t have an attitude about it, he just accepted his role, embraced his role and kept working at it, and now he’s back in the mix at tailback.”
WIDE RECEIVER
82 | Ahmmon Richards | Junior | 6-1 | 205
81 | Darrell Langham | Redshirt Senior | 6-4 | 235
18 | Lawrence Cager | Redshirt Junior | 6-5 | 220
3 | Mike Harley | Sophomore | 5-9 | 175
4 | Jeff Thomas | Sophomore | 5-10 | 180
83 | Evidence Njoku | Redshirt Freshman | 6-6 | 225
6 | Mark Pope | Freshman | 6-1 | 180
7 | Brian Hightower |Freshman | 6-3 | 210
8 | Dee Wiggins | Freshman | 6-3 | 195
11 | Marquez Ezzard | Freshman | 6-2 | 210
Richards is the biggest name and most proven player in Miami’s receiving corps. A consensus Freshman All-America and an All-ACC selection two seasons ago, Richards was a dominant force in 2016 when he set the Miami freshman record for receiving yards – besting the mark set by Hurricanes legend Michael Irvin. Richards saw action in just eight games in an injury-riddled 2017, but still managed 439 receiving yards and three touchdowns. In just 21 career games, Richards has totaled 73 receptions, 1,373 receiving yards and six touchdown catches. He enters the 2018 season on the watch lists for the Biletnikoff and Maxwell Awards.
“The first day of camp, we had one-on-ones against the [defensive backs] and it was in the red zone,” Co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach Ron Dugans said. “He went up, I think it was Michael Jackson – I forgot who the DB was – and he went up, high-pointed the ball and almost one-handed. He came back down and it’s like ‘wow.’ I’m just glad to have him back. It has been a pleasure to see him out here, come back, working and trying to get back into playing shape and trying to lead the younger guys. So it has been a really good blessing for all of us to see him back.”
While Richards is healthy and ready for a big 2018, the roles of the wide receivers behind him are unassigned. Dugans has said he would like to play an eight-man rotation at wide receiver and those eight spots will be earned. Cager and Langham have the most experience, while Thomas and Harley are back for their second seasons. Njoku, who missed all of 2017 with an injury, joins Pope, Hightower, Wiggins and Ezzard as freshmen who will look to prove they are worthy of a playing time.
“At the ‘Z,’ you’ve got [Mark] Pope,” Dugans said. “He has done some really good things. His thing coming in was just confidence. He’s got to learn the plays and trust the coaching. He has done a really good job. He has shown some flashes. We’ve got [to get] him to be consistent. [Brian] Hightower has shown some flashes also. That group at the ‘Z’ position, as far as the young guys, my biggest thing with those guys is being consistent – because you’re not just ball-catchers. You have to be able to block on the perimeter also. If they’re not blocking, they’re not going to play.”
TIGHT END
9 | Brevin Jordan | Freshman | 6-3 | 245
85 | Will Mallory | Freshman | 6-5 | 230
Projected starter Michael Irvin II suffered a knee injury early in fall camp, opening the door for Miami’s highly-regarded freshman tight end duo to make a major impact. Jordan and Mallory were elite recruits who have flashed advanced ability since arriving on campus. Both are poised to be valuable targets for Rosier in Miami’s passing game this season.
“Brevin, specifically, is a kid that has unbelievable athleticism,” tight ends coach Todd Hartley said. “You saw that in high school. You come out here and he just has stuff that you can’t coach. He runs routes well. He has a good understanding of how to beat press [coverage], how to understand coverages, reading leverage and getting in and out of breaks. He’s an extremely gifted route-runner, but he’s also, for a young kid, he’s pretty good at the point of attack. A long way to go. It really is a benefit to him that he goes against our defensive line every day. He is right where I thought he’d be, if not further along.
“We didn’t really know what to expect from Mallory getting out here,” Hartley said. “You know his body type, and we knew what kind of role we had for him, but that kid is doing unbelievable. He’s really having a good camp, making a lot of plays and running and catching. The blocking stuff that we’ve put him in there with, he has really done a nice job. Both of them need to just keep doing what they’re doing. They are a long ways away, but they are on track to be where they need to be.”
OFFENSIVE LINE
77 | Jahair Jones | Redshirt Senior | 6-4 | 315
62 | Hayden Mahoney | Redshirt Junior | 6-5 | 305
50 | Venzell Boulware | Redshirt Junior | 6-3 | 306
51 | DJ Scaife, Jr. | Freshman | 6-3 | 300
Jones and Mahoney are the two newest members of the starting lineup, while Boulware and Scaife are in the first season with the Canes. Jones and Mahoney are penciled in at guard, joining tackles Tyree St. Louis and Navaughn Donaldson and center Tyler Gauthier.
“We are meshing together pretty well,” Jones said. “You know, since Coach Searels shifted around us, a bunch of positions that a lot of people never played or regain to play again. But, you know, it’s meshing together.”
“We are making progress,” Jones said. “But we’ve got to stay consistent. Stay consistent and keep working because we have a big task ahead of us, and we are just getting ready. That’s all.”
Boulware, who came to Miami after three years at Tennessee, is pushing for playing time at both guard spots, while Scaife has stood out as one of the Canes’ top reserve offensive linemen.
“I am looking forward to them just coming out and playing,” Mahoney said of the newcomers. “It is a little hard, because of the playbook. Some guys are hesitant. But they are getting better at it … New guys though, [freshman offensive linemen] John Campbell, [Jr.], DJ Scaife, [Jr.], they were here in the spring. And DJ has been doing really well. He has been grading out well. And he is going to be a good player, he has done really well.”
