Mario Cristobal Gives Injury Update for Star Defensive Player
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No. 13 Miami saw a scare on the field in the victory against Virginia Tech.
Star defensive back Jakobe Thomas was down in pain, and it looked like he would be out for a long time. He missed the rest of the game, but head coach Mario Cristobal calmed the masses down as he had positive news following the game.
"I think he's doing good," Cristobal said of Thomas. "Just took a really good shot there. Probably a helmet right to the arm. You always want to check it to see if there's any type of fracture, but the X-rays were negative. We feel really confident that he'll be ready to roll next week."
Miami saw many of their younger players see the field, who played well in the absence of the star defensive player. The Canes are already missing several players on the back end, especially with Keionte Scott missing the rest of the season with a lower-body injury.
The Hurricanes are trying to get as healthy as possible, as they are starting to get some players back, but not all.
"Proud of our guys coming out here today without, you know, our frontline players and OJ Frederique, David Blay, and Jakobe going down. Keionte's been down. Josh [Moore] tried to go, but he couldn't go. But we got a little bit out of CJ," Cristobal said.
The Canes really missed David Blay, who has been a dominant run stopper this season. Without him, the Hokies nearly rushed for 200 yards, the biggest all season for anyone against the stout Hurricanes' defense.
Defensively the Hurricanes are looking to fill in plenty of holes with their depth, and the way they are playing, they can. Damari Brown has returned and has been locked down since stepping back on the field. Xavier Lucas, Dylan Day, and Bryce Fitzgerlad have all been outstanding without Scott in the back.
Now with the positive news for Thomas, the Hurricanes won't be without one of their best players in the secondary. They hit true gems in the transfer portal between Scott and Thomas, and losing both at the end of this all-important season would be terrible for an elite defense.
Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University and is the site lead for the Miami Hurricanes on SI. He can be reached at Twitter @Justice_News5.
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Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University earning a Bachelor of Arts and Science in Communications with a concentration in Print and Digital Journalism. During his time in Starkville, he spent a year as an intern working for Mississippi State On SI primarily covering basketball, football, baseball, and soccer while writing, recording, and creating multimedia stories during his tenor. Since graduating, he has assumed the role of lead staff writer for Miami Hurricanes On SI covering football, basketball, baseball, and all things Hurricanes related.