''This Is My New Why''
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Physically, Mark Fletcher Jr. feels as good as he has in a long time.
He had a full offseason to focus on improving his strength and speed instead of having to worry about recovering from an injury. He’s running with power, has become a leader on Miami’s offense and on Saturday night, for the second time in as many weeks, he found his way into the end zone twice for his hometown Hurricanes.
Against USF, Fletcher topped the 100-yard mark for the first time since his freshman year in 2023 when the running back did it against both NC State and Louisville.
His efforts helped the fourth-ranked Hurricanes post a 49-12 win over the then-18th-ranked Bulls and he’s on the verge of breaking into Miami’s top 10 when it comes to career rushing touchdowns.
“I feel amazing. I feel strong. I feel faster. I feel just overall better. I feel like a football player now,” Fletcher said after the win over USF. “I just feel like I can be able to handle four quarters of football. … This meant a lot and I’m going to enjoy this for 24 hours. But I feel like I still missed probably some opportunities. I could have had more, as nothing’s ever going to be perfect. But you strive for perfection, and I know I’ve just got to continue on stacking days and getting even better physically.”
Added Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal, “His ability to accelerate, to make people miss and run through people is awesome. And he’s got great eyes. He sees things great, and he gets better as the game goes on. The third and fourth quarter was certainly some of his best play.”
Fletcher is no doubt, running with power.
He’s running with purpose, too.
On Saturday, Fletcher walked into and out of Hard Rock Stadium the same way: wearing an orange and green shirt that featured photos of his late father and the words “Long Live.”
The shirt, like his play, has been a way for Fletcher to honor the man who introduced him to football and was his biggest fan, Mark Sr., who passed away last year days before the Hurricanes took the field for their annual rivalry game against Florida State.
Fletcher played in that game against the Seminoles, knowing it’s what his father would have wanted. And he scored that night, immediately taking a knee and pointing toward the sky when he got into the end zone.
Ever since that emotional week, football has felt different.
“I think about him every single day,” Fletcher said. “It feels like it happened yesterday. I think about him all the time, in everything I do. This is my new why. I don’t really know what my way was before. I guess I just enjoyed playing football and that was my why. It was just something fun.
“But now, it’s for somebody who never missed a game. My dad never missed a single game of my football career. To have him miss a game and it wasn’t even his fault, man, that’s my why and I’m just going to just continue on stepping hard for him.”
As difficult as the last year has been for Fletcher, the running back has had the support of his Hurricanes coaches and teammates.
All of them were at his father’s funeral. And all of them are cheering every step he takes, on and off the field.
“A lot of us have known Mark since he was younger and we all knew his dad. So, just for something like that, so tragic, to happen to him, we just felt like we need to be there for him. He’s always there for us, good and bad. We had to be there for him during his tough time,” fellow running back Jordan Lyle said earlier this season. “We’ve all been praying for Mark. … He’s just a big part of everybody’s lives. He’s basically the jell that keeps everybody together. Mark’s a great guy, probably one of the top players I’ve been around with.”
Knowing his teammates and coaches are behind him has made a world of difference for Fletcher, who is determined to continue doing his part to help the Hurricanes win games.
He knows that even on a team filled with as many talented playmakers as Miami has, it’s his responsibility to produce when asked.
That’s a responsibility he doesn’t take lightly.
“I want to be a relentless runner every time I get the ball because it’s a blessing to even be on this team, and for them to trust me with the ball in my hands,” Fletcher said. “I’m just going to make sure that they can trust me with it again. So, every opportunity I get the chance to run the ball, I’m just going to give it everything I’ve got.”
Through three games this season, that’s exactly what he’s done.
Fletcher had a game-high 66 yards in Miami’s win over Notre Dame to open the season. He followed that up with 86 yards and two touchdowns against Bethune-Cookman. And against USF, it was 120 yards and two touchdowns – just six-yards shy of the career high he had against Louisville two years ago.
Now, with a game against in-state rival Florida looming, Fletcher is determined to continue building on his – and his team’s – success.
“We just go back to practice now. Watch film on this game, see what we can do better and then fix it. We’re just going to continue playing Miami Hurricanes football,” he said. “We’re going to enjoy this tonight, and we know who we have next week. We’re just going to put our heads down and go right back to work.”
