Takeaways From Day 12 of Miami Hurricanes Fall Practice
In this story:
Photo: Jaylan Knighton; Credit: Collier Logan, AllHurricanes.com
After a less than stellar media-viewing portion of practice on Monday, the Miami Hurricanes looked much sharper as a whole on Thursday.
Here are All Hurricanes' takeaways and highlights from UM’s 12th day of fall camp.
1. The wide receivers rebounded after a drop-filled practice on Monday.
Miami's first practice of its third week of fall camp was rough for the receiving unit, but the group of pass-catchers bounced back near the end of the week.
The wideouts dropped a bunch of catchable passes on Monday, and there was a lack of precision from the group while running routes. Questions were raised after practice about the drops to third-year receiver Xavier Restrepo.
"That's a big emphasis right now in the receiving room, it's catching balls," Restrepo said. "We're just gonna stay on our guys, keep catching, even myself, just stay consistent with the catching."
"I take 100% ownership of all that. Whether it's third-team, fourth-team, first-team, second-team, it's on me. So, every drop you see out there, it's on me."
The talented yet inexperienced unit rose to the occasion during the media-viewing duration of practice on Thursday. Routes were crisper, and there was only dropped pass.
2. Jaylan Knighton is the most natural running back in the passing game.
In a packed position group, Knighton has been able to separate himself thanks to his effectiveness as a pass-catcher.
The third-year back rarely drops passes, and he can turn upfield in a flash. Knighton has also shown positional versatility at his position, lining up as an outside receiver at times throughout last Thursday's practice.
Knighton caught 20 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns last season.
3. Darrell Jackson Jr. received first-team reps.
With the third week of fall camp coming to an end, depth charts and rotations are beginning to form as week one is on the horizon.
On the defensive line, more than a handful of players are expected to rotate and compete for playing time. Jackson, a transfer from Maryland, is expected to be one of those players.
The monstrous 6-foot-6, 300-pound lineman was first up in multiple drills on Thursday. He's the most physically gifted player in his position group, and he's expected to carve out a rotational spot on the Hurricanes' defensive line this fall.
4. Tyler Van Dyke was on point.
The preseason Maxwell Award candidate was sharp on Thursday, especially on a couple of downfield throws to wide receiver Restrepo. Van Dyke's ball placement on deep throws is one of his many strengths, and he's shown this throughout fall camp.
The other quarterbacks in the position room enjoyed solid days. Freshman Jacurri Brown has really started to improve and become more consistent after an up-and-down first few days of fall practice.
5. Linebackers practiced ball recovery.
Led by co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Charlie Strong, Miami's linebackers worked on scooping the football off the field.
The Hurricanes struggled last season at recovering fumbles, finishing tied for 118th in the country in that statistic.
AllHurricanes.com is your home for all things Miami Hurricanes football, recruiting, basketball and other athletics, all the time. Follow along on social media at @AllHurricanes on Twitter and All Hurricanes on Facebook for round-the-clock news and analysis.
