Canes Camp Report: Aug. 8
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The Hurricanes were back in action on the Greentree Practice fields for their fourth day of preseason camp, and after Saturday’s practice, defensive linemen Armondo Blount, Marquise Lightfoot and Justin Scott, along with linebacker Chase Smith, spoke with reporters to share their thoughts on the day’s session and how camp is progressing.
Here are some of their best quotes from Saturday’s practice as Miami moves one step closer to its Sept. 4 opener at Stanford.
Defensive lineman Armondo Blount
On how his game has developed and grown as he’s gained more experience at Miami:
“I would say my IQ expanded with my game. I’ve just been learning more, becoming a student of the game at Miami, going 1-0 every day in everything and just becoming better at everything; just advancing with my mindset … my physicality and everything.”
On the competitiveness and camaraderie on the defensive line:
“Well, with the D-line, we push each other every day. You can’t have [any] off days with this D-line. We just go relentless every day. We make sure to keep each other at a high standard. Not just me and Marquise [Lightfoot], me and Ahmad [Moten Sr.], me and [Justin] Scott, even the younger guys. We have younger guys like [freshman] Asharri Charles. I push all my guys. They push me. I feel like that’s what makes us better.”
On what he’s seen from some of the younger offensive linemen so far in camp:
“I would say our young guys are hard workers. We’ve got some young guys that are willing to work. … We’ve got guys that are willing to fall in with the program and hold themselves to a standard, because once you get [to] Miami, [there’s] a standard you’ve got to uphold no matter your age. So, I would say that. With the younger guys, they’re very hard workers.
On what he learned from former Miami defensive linemen Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor:
“Work ethic. They showed me that if you put enough work in, anything is possible. Just with the weight room, football, technique walk-throughs. Those guys did everything 100 percent. They didn’t just go hard on the field. They went hard in meeting rooms, in the film room. It showed me a lot.”
Defensive lineman Marquise Lightfoot
On fellow defensive lineman Ahmad Moten Sr.:
“He’s physical. He’s real physical. I hang out with him outside of football, so we’ve got a good bond. So, I know him. That’s not me being biased, but he’s real physical. I know he’s going to get his job done while we’re on that field. [He’s] somebody I can trust.”
On fellow defensive lineman Armondo Blount:
“We continue to push each other. He wants to see me be great. I want to see him be great. We came in at the same time, so, that’s my brother. We’re going to see each other at the top.”
On stepping up to lead now that he’s one of the veterans in Miami’s defensive line room:
“There are a lot of leaders and we all like to lead by example and by being vocal here and there. But leading by example and helping the guys that’s in my position and on the field in other positions, too, helping those guys the same way Rueben Bain and [Mesidor] helped me. … We’ve got to move like pros. So, keeping that same attention to detail with everything. … We’re just trying to lead everybody down that same path.”
On the importance of accountability in the locker room:
“It’s real important. Everybody’s got to understand that this is a team and we’re trying to get somewhere. And like I always say, it’s like a family, a hundred brothers. We all want to see each other be great and grow as people on and off the field.”
Defensive lineman Justin Scott:
On fellow defensive lineman Ahmad Moten Sr.:
“He kind of just opened my eyes up to playing faster. So, when I came in as a freshman, he was kind of one of the first guys that took me under his wing. And then ever since then, he always was critiquing me, just letting me know what I could get better at. So, just him really opening my eyes to using my speed or using my twitch to really get around defenders and really just utilizing that to my game.”
On fellow defensive linemen Armondo Blount and Marquise Lightfoot:
“I feel like they’re carrying the torch [well]. They picked it up from Bain and [Mesidor]. They were with them for about two years. They kind of learned the standard, learned how to practice, what to do, how to take care of your body and kind of just kept it and implemented it to their own routines. I’m really proud of those guys, just seeing them grow into leader roles.”
Linebacker Chase Smith
On the linebacker room:
“We’re extremely confident in our group and we feel like we have extremely good young guys, and we feel like we have depth to us. We feel really extremely confident in our group.”
On freshman linebacker Karsten Busch:
“He really picked up things really quick, and I have a really good outlook on him. I think he’s going to have a very promising career, and he can be an immediate impact for us, for sure.”
On defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman:
“I think he’s extremely intentional in everything he does, very process-oriented, as you guys know. And he’s exactly what we need.”
