Will Recruiting Help Miami's OL Get Out of a Bad Situation?
The current state of the offensive line for the Miami Hurricanes is not even average, let alone good. Why is that though?
It’s Year 1 of the Mario Cristobal era in Coral Gables and he’s utilizing the players on the roster. What did Cristobal and offensive line coach Alex Mirabal inherit?
Going back and researching the recruiting numbers, Miami’s present situation is honestly not that surprising, especially with a plethora of injuries up front, including future NFL offensive tackle Zion Nelson being sidelined.
From the current roster, just the sheer numbers of offensive linemen signed by the Hurricanes, by class, is not ideal. Beginning with 2018 recruits, which are now fifth-year seniors, here are the offensive linemen that were signed by The U.
2018 - DJ Scaife, Cleveland Reed, and John Campbell.
2019 - Ousman Traore (junior college), Adam ELGammal, Zion Nelson, and Jakai Clark.
2020 - Jalen Rivers and Chris Washington.
2021 - Laurance Seymour, Michael McLaughlin, and Ryan Rodriguez.
2022 - Matthew McCoy and Anez Cooper.
That’s a grand total of 14 offensive linemen in five years. That’s a low total, just for starters. At minimum, the traditional number of at least three offensive linemen signed, per recruiting class, is a good rule to go by.
Ideally, a team wants to be at 15 or 16 offensive linemen signed during a four-year period. That's also just the players that signed and does not account for transfers or players leaving the Miami program for any other reason.
Reed, Rodriguez, and ElGammal are no longer on the roster. Miami did, however, add transfers like Logan Sagapolu and Jonathan Denis, both from Oregon, thankfully. It's still a lot to ask to see consistency and that's a prime reason why this year's offensive line has been a roller coaster ride.
Combined with the rash of injuries the Canes are going through right now, one can point to the offensive line as a primary culprit for a 3-4 overall record. The running game should be considered the biggest downfall.
Miami has rushed for just 257 yards during its past four games, averaging 64.3 yards on the ground. Assuming that was a season-long total, Miami would be dead last in the NCAA in rushing. Currently, Boston College is No. 131 by averaging 67.6 yards per game, bringing up the rear of FBS rushing totals.
Now, 64.3 yards stemmed from only four games and it was a different scenario when the Canes were healthy up front. With 657 yards through the first three games of the season, the Hurricanes were averaging 219 yards per contest.
Matthew McCoy is a left tackle candidate.
That’s the point of recruiting offensive linemen in numbers, however. The prior coaching staff came up short; that’s just the truth. The current staff has attempted to work around it and it’s been a struggle.
When injuries took place, it’s been much harder to make the situation to continue to be productive. The good news is that the current freshman class has talented offensive linemen. McCoy is as agile as one will find and he’s a good bet to one day man the left tackle position. There's also quite a bit of hope that Cooper can be a big-time player as well.
That’s also why the 2023 recruiting class is full of talented offensive linemen that have already committed to play for Miami.
It has five players along the offensive line among the 17 commitments in total. The class is headlined by national recruit Francis Mauigoa, a player that’s been a mainstay for Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy. While not ideal, it’s not out of the question that he could play as a freshman for the Canes.
Tommy Kinsler could play guard or tackle for the Hurricanes.
The other four recruits in the trenches are Tommy Kinsler from Ocala (Fla.) Trinity Catholic, Connor Lew from Acworth (Ga.) Kennesaw Mountain, Frankie Tinilau from Miami (Fla.) La Salle, and Antonio Tripp, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy.
Looking at the overall numbers, there’s another point about recruiting that’s vital to note. The 2024 recruiting class will probably need at least four offensive linemen to be added as well.
This is a process. Fortunately, Miami is headed in the right direction. It will be interesting to see what Cristobal and Mirabal come up with for the rest of the 2022 season to mix and match the starting lineup while key players are banged up.
Beginning in 2023, Miami should be able to begin to stabilize the offensive line position and help the overall football program gain more stability.
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