''We're Just Ready''

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Ahmad Moten Sr. has been through his share of tough practices.

A veteran defensive lineman for the Hurricanes, he’s weathered grueling workouts on Greentree in the steamy, South Florida heat. He’s endured the mental and physical demands that come with the day-to-day grind that is preseason camp, from the early-morning team meetings to the evening film review sessions.

And he can’t wait to do it all over again.

After getting hurt during Miami’s College Football Playoff run last season, Moten wasn’t able to do much physically on Greentree during spring drills. And while he sat in on meetings and worked with his teammates and coaches as much as he could, Moten hasn’t played much football – real football – since January.

So, for him, the idea of getting back on Greentree – which he’ll do Tuesday when Miami has its first practice of the 2026 season – is plenty of reason to smile.

“I’m just ready to finally run full speed, to hit something, hit somebody,” said Moten, who totaled 31 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2025. “I’m excited. I’m just very excited to play football.”

He isn’t the only Hurricane eager to get back on the field.

Quarterback Darian Mensah, a transfer from Duke, can’t wait to continue learning more about the offensive playmakers around him and building on the work they did together during the spring and summer.

Offensive linemen Matthew McCoy and Ryan Rodriguez are excited about the opportunity to step up and help set the tone for a new-look unit expected to uphold an extremely high standard under head coach Mario Cristobal and offensive line coach Alex Mirabal.

And wide receiver Malachi Toney and defensive back Bryce Fitzgerald, both sophomores now, are eager to prove they’ve only grown since their breakout seasons a year ago.

“They passed that torch down to me, CJ [Daniels] and the older guys in that room,” said Toney, who was named the ACC Rookie of the Year last December after totaling a team-high 1,622 all-purpose yards and 11 touchdowns for the Hurricanes during his freshman campaign. “I’m the leader in that room now, so I’ve just got to do [with the younger guys] what they did with me, and everyone else around me.”

Said Fitzgerald, who had a team-high six interceptions for the Hurricanes in 2025, “I don’t feel like it’s pressure. I look at it as motivation. People will be like, ‘Oh, that was freshman year. You have to go do it again.’ Seeing that every day, it gets me fueled up. I’m just ready to go out there.”

As the Hurricanes prepare to get a new season started, they do so knowing there are plenty of expectations on them from fans, former players, and college football experts across the country.

After going 13-3 last year and coming up just short in its quest for the program’s sixth national title after a 27-21 loss to Indiana in the CFP Championship, Miami was voted the preseason favorite to win the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Mensah was named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, with six more Hurricanes – Fletcher, Toney, Moten, Fitzgerald, offensive lineman Samson Okunlola and linebacker Mohamed Toure – all earning spots on the preseason All-ACC team. Toney by himself earned three spots on the team as a receiver, an all-purpose player, and a specialist.

Still, the Hurricanes insist they’re not going to let any of the preseason accolades distract them from preparing for the challenges that await. Nor are they content to rest on their accomplishments of a year ago.

“We’re [emphasizing] the message that those things that people are saying, they can’t help us. Whether they’re saying good things or bad things, they just can’t help us,” said Fletcher, who rushed for a team-high 1,192 yards and 12 touchdowns last year. “The only thing that matters is what these people in the building say and what we believe in. … We believe in the work. We believe in working hard, extremely hard, each and every single day and we believe in not making any excuses. We believe in holding each other accountable and we believe this is a player-led team. That’s what it’s going to take to be a successful team and just to be successful, period. We have to all hold each other accountable.”

Added Rodriguez, “We’ve just got to tune it out. Don’t even listen to it. … the positive, the negative comments, anything in general, just tune it out, good or bad. Just stay neutral and keep working.”

That work, the Hurricanes know, will get them back to where they want to be.

They know, too, that what they do over the course of the next four weeks will help set the tone for the entire season, a season that begins Sept. 4 when Miami travels to Stanford for its season opener.

Now, they say, it’s time to get the journey started.

“[Training camp] is the season for us, to be honest,” McCoy said. “This really dictates what our season’s going to be like and it’s exciting, seeing these guys every day and seeing them work and push through things that a lot of people couldn’t. Seeing how tough these guys are, it’s a different feeling and going into it, we’re ready. We’re just ready.”

Said Mensah, “I can’t wait to go and put on the pads. It feels like I haven’t done it in forever. Yeah, the excitement levels are high in this building.”