Sophomore Surge: Miami Secondary to Feature Plenty of Young Talent
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Will the Miami Hurricanes’ young secondary members be able to lead the Canes' defense? Right on the verge of fall camp, it appears that the onus will be placed squarely on their backs.
The following four players will be vital components to Miami’s defense. All Hurricanes presents a closer look at each player.
Cornerback - Daryl Porter, Jr.
After his freshman season at West Virginia, Porter is back in South Florida playing for Miami. He prepped for Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) American Heritage prior to signing with the Mountaineers and being a valuable asset to their 2021 defense.
Porter registered 46 tackles, one tackle for loss, six pass breakups, and one interception last season. His best statistical game came at TCU, registering three tackles and an interception.
The 5-foot-10 and 185-pound cornerback is expected to lock down a starting cornerback role this fall, with his natural talent and experience will be an asset for Miami.
Safety - Avantae Williams
Coming out of DeLand (Fla.) High School just north of Orlando, Williams is a second-year player with big expectations. As a redshirt freshman, Williams provided moments that prove he could be a primary defender.
During the game at Florida State, his seven tackles were a season-high. For his final four games combined, Williams played significant minutes in the Miami secondary, recording 15 tackles. He also had an interception against Georgia Tech during that same stretch of games.
Williams is expected to help fill the void left by departed fifth-year senior Amari Carter, who was responsible for 45 tackles, three tackles for loss and an interception last year. While not an easy task to replace Carter, Williams possesses the speed and football IQ to be impactful in coverage and against the run much like the departed senior.
Safety - Kamren Kinchens
If there’s a player that was battle-tested prior to coming to Miami, Kinchens is probably that Hurricane. He attended Miami (Fla.) Northwestern, one of the top prep programs in America. Based on his first-year results, he was more than ready to contribute.
It’s impressive that Kinchens was Miami’s fourth-leading tackler last fall with 44. Overall, Kinchens established himself as an overall defender by making at least one tackle in each of the Hurricanes’ last eight games, all against ACC competition, highlighted by his four solo tackles during Miami’s road upset victory over North Carolina State. For the season, Kinchens also recorded a tackle for loss and four pass breakups.
Building from his 2021 performance, Kinchens has a chance to be one of Miami’s best defensive players regardless of position.
Star - James Williams
A towering safety at 6-foot-5 and 224 pounds, Williams is actually expected to play the Star position for the Hurricanes. That position entails playing over the slot receiver, as well as sometimes blitzing off the edge and playing in the box, i.e. a hybrid linebacker-safety position.
Williams is one of the most physically gifted players on Miami’s roster. Despite his height, he can cover in space like few other players in college football with his size. Now he must utilize that advantage for Miami. There’s reason to believe Williams will do just that.
He came towards the middle of the 2021 season, recording 14 total tackles combined against North Carolina, North Carolina State, and Pittsburgh before seeing his season come to a close due to an injury. He’s also a motivated young man. Check out his tweet referencing those individuals that doubt him:
All four of these contributors were highly touted prospects coming out of Florida prep programs. They have all been competing against top competition since before coming to Coral Gables.
Now that they have a year of FBS college football experience added to their repertoire, Miami fans should expect all of these young players to make their mark in 2022.
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