Miami's Offensive Line Holds Key to 2023 Season?
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How the Miami Hurricanes 2023 season goes will begin with the Canes offensive line unit, depth included. The offensive line, it must play at a much higher level than last season.
Considering the talent that’s here now, as compared to 2022, it's hard to see that not being the case. However, one still needs to look at the positions one-by-one, to come to a more concrete conclusion.
The following commentary would be based on the players that played last season, what was seen in spring, and the little bit from fall camp that’s been reported upon from Alex Donno and Liam Willerup. Here’s one of their recent podcasts which breaks down some of the offensive line discussion, prior to more details about the potential players manning each of the five spots below.
LISTEN Here: Locked On Canes Podcast
med ready at any point this season by offensive line coach Alex Mirabal, that could allow Rivers to move and play offensive guard. Rivers has been versatile during his Hurricanes career.
"There is no selfishness in the group. They put 'us' above themselves." 🙌
— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) August 7, 2023
Get to know @CoachMirabal ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Zb7IOm4LvU
Left Guard - This is where the Transfer Portal begins to help the Hurricanes. Javion Cohen started over 20 games for Alabama. Nick Saban and the Tide have been producing NFL talent in the trenches, and now the Canes possess a chance to utilize the 6-foot-4 and 305-pound offensive lineman’s skills.
The bigger question would be the backup left guard. Could it be freshman Tommy Kinsler now that Laurence Seymore hit the Transfer Portal? Perhaps Rivers moves down to guard and Okunlola would play left tackle? These types of questions must be finalized during fall camp in the event of a future injury to Cohen.
Center - Matt Lee, the #1 player from Countdown to Canes Football, this man would be the primary key to the entire operation. Experience, savviness, toughness, and most importantly, the ability to make the proper line calls to keep quarterback Tyler Van Dyke upright and completing passes.
He’s also accustomed to grinding with the inside running game, as that’s a staple of UCF’s offense, where Lee transferred from. All of those traits combined, they make Lee a player that just has to stay healthy.
The biggest concern here would be the backup center. That’s a yearly concern for the Canes and every college football team, honestly. Snapping the football is not as easy as it looks.
When there’s a 300-pound defensive lineman right in front of Lee or another center, yes, that’s adding pressure to the snap and then the subsequent block. Do not forget about making the line calls either. Jonathan Dennis came over from Oregon so at least he’s familiar with Mirabal and the scheme he operates.
Right Guard - Anez Cooper would seem to be the best bet here. He’s a road grader from Pleasant Grove (Ala.) High School and also provides experience.
He is coming off a freshman season with four starts and saw action during 10 games. That’s a tremendous start to this young man’s college career. Now, the backup situation could be a situation of musical chairs. There’s Rivers, the do-it-all offensive lineman. That would place Okunlola, once again, in a position to start, hypothetically.
The other option would stem from how right tackle works out. So let’s discuss that position prior to discussing more options at guard.
Right Tackle - Francis Mauigoa has been the main man since spring ball. He’s one of college football’s most imposing players at 6-foot-6 and 342 pounds (his muscle mass index is also the highest on the team, per Mario Cristobal).
No reason to believe that Mauigoa is not the deal at this point. Just need to see him on the field – during live games – to solidify that statement. Backing him up would be redshirt freshman Matthew McCoy.
He’s an athletic young man himself that did not start playing offensive line until his senior season at Creekside High School near Jacksonville. “If” he’s starting to make the strides needed to start, that could allow Mauigoa to play inside at guard if one of the interior players fell to injury. Something to think about.
Overall for the offensive line, Miami is still in a far better place in 2023 than 2022. As for the list above, players could and probably already did, move around practiced at different spots. It's par for the course during a fall camp. Still, it's about mixing and matching. Miami has more talent, more experience, and more numbers to be effective.
There’s some concern without Nelson, sure. There should be as he could be an NFL player if he returns healthy. That’s also why the recruiting efforts, along with the Transfer Portal, were pivotal to the Canes this past off season. As fall camp moves forward, at this point there's reason to believe the offensive line to be one of the better units on the entire team.
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