Canes Camp Report: Aug. 10
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The Hurricanes were back in action on the Greentree Practice fields to start their second week of preseason camp, and after Monday’s practice, running back Marty Brown, wide receiver Cooper Barkate, tight end Elija Lofton and defensive lineman Damon Wilson II spoke with reporters to share their thoughts on the day’s session and more.
Here are some of their best quotes from Monday’s practice as Miami moves one step closer to its Sept. 4 opener at Stanford.
Running back Marty Brown
On what he learned about himself last season:
“I learned just to be patient and just be consistent, be ready when your name is called, really.”
On stepping up as a leader because he’s one of the veterans in the running backs room:
“I feel like I have … I’m not as vocal a leader, but I try to come in and try to be consistent every day in terms of my process and leading the younger guys and making sure they’re doing the right things and being that older guy they can always come talk to.”
On the depth in the running backs room:
“It’s awesome because we keep each other on our toes and when it’s time to get in, I feel like I’m ready.”
On freshman running back Javian Mallory:
“He’s smooth. He’s patient. He’s just a great kid. He’s competitive. He’s calm. He’s poised. He’s everything you want as a running back. Power, speed, everything.”
Wide receiver Cooper Barkate
On the culture in the wide receivers room and what makes it different:
“What definitely sets it apart [is] the competitiveness that we have. We’ve got a lot of depth, so, every day we’re kind of just feeding off each other, trying to make plays. But I’d say the culture’s a great culture. I think everyone respects each other and loves each other and [wide receivers coach Kevin] Beard does a great job of doing that.”
On the competition at Miami:
“It’s everything. I mean, that’s really why I came here, because I wanted to sharpen my game and [it’s] not only having the DBs to go against, but you’ve got someone right behind you coming for your spot, so, I love it here.”
On sophomore receivers Joshua Moore and Daylyn Upshaw:
“Two crazy talents and they’re both young kids. But really, everyone in the room, besides all their natural talent, what really stood out to me is how hard they take it off the field and how serious [they are]. Really all these young kids are professionals. I think they probably learned that a little bit from [Malachi Toney]. He’s got a great head on his shoulders, and I’d say the same for Josh and Daylyn.”
On wide receiver Malachi Toney:
“He’s a great kid. I can’t give enough praise to him, to be honest. Obviously, you see what he does on the field, but off the field, he’s a very quiet kid. He’s so soft-spoken, but he’s a tremendous leader and he takes his work seriously. He’s a pro already.”
On wide receivers coach Kevin Beard:
“He’s funny. He’s loud. Energetic. He’s a great coach. He not only teaches the schematics of our offense, but also the techniques. You can go into his office, I think, 18 hours out of the day and he’ll be up there and you can ask him, ‘Hey, I’ve got some issues with this or this on this type of coverage,’ or whatever it may be, and he’ll give you an answer.”
Tight End Elija Lofton
On tight ends coach Mike Viti:
“Coach Viti is a great coach, a great human to be around. He’s a great person. He’s family oriented, so he pushes us every day to be our best and be there for each other as a team, as a brother.”
On the tight ends room:
“We’ve got a lot of ballers in the tight end room. We’ve got Gavin [Mueller], Israel [Briggs], Owen [Ruskavich], Jack [Nickel], Jackson [Carver]. We’ve got a lot of guys that [are] ready to go ball. Every day we go in and attack it as a brotherhood, as a group, [so we can] go 1-0 every day we step on that field.”
On quarterback Darian Mensah:
“He’s a big leader. … He’s a leader on and off the field. He’s a great guy on and off the field. You can’t say anything bad about him. He’s just a great human to be around and I’m happy he’s on our team.”
On what it means to be a veteran in the tight ends room and mentor younger tight ends like Gavin Mueller and Israel Briggs:
“It means everything. [Those] guys are like my little brothers. Izzy’s back from where I’m kind of from, so we’ve been talking since before he even got here. So, having them as my little brothers [is] just teaching them everything the older guys taught me in previous years before they left.”
Defensive lineman Damon Wilson II
On fellow defensive linemen Armondo Blount and Marquise Lightfoot:
“They can become whatever they want to become. They’re elite players right now. They can obviously keep getting better. Armondo Blount is a big man who’s violent and physical. Marquise is fast, electric. He’s violent as well. So, just being able to play with those guys just raised my competition up and [is] baking me get better every day.”
On being coached by Jason Taylor:
“He expects the best out of you all the time. There’s never a moment where he just lets a play side. Every play is being coached. Every play is important. So, just knowing that, running off the field is important. No hand on hips. The small stuff is big with him. … I think everybody is able to get attention with him, man. His room is always open. I just know he’s always there.”
On what it’s like to compete against Samson Okunlola and the rest of Miami’s offensive line:
“Man, I enjoy playing with Samson. You can tell he’s a high IQ player. Before we get set, you can tell that he’s always thinking about how he’s going to play me. And then we come back in the locker room, we sit down [and] talk. … me, Ryan [Rodriguez], [Matthew] McCoy. Shoot, [Alex Mirabal], the offensive line coach was giving me tips yesterday. … I feel like everybody on the team is [helpful].”
