Miami Hurricanes Football

HEIGHT: 6'4"

WEIGHT: 319

HAND: 9 3/8"

ARM: 33 7/8"

WINGSPAN: 81 1/8"

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40-YARD DASH:

3-CONE:

SHUTTLE:

VERTICAL:

BROAD:

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POSITIVES

— Thick, strapping build with a wide-bodied frame and good arm length.

— Works independent hands with a stiff punch and stays square in pass protection to strike and quickly engulf tightly aligned rushers whom he can latch onto right away.

— Covers up and blots out first-level defenders in the post on duo double-team blocks.

— Will deliver knockback power and jolt on contact with heavy hands, forearms and shoulders.

— Works hard to strain and stay attached, giving him a shot to secure rushing lanes by widening out defenders who get to his edges.

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NEGATIVES

— Upright play style with a stiff lower half and clunky feet that get stuck when having to redirect and change directions.

— Has a bad habit of playing with too wide of a base, reaching and overextending into contact on angle-drive blocks, sapping his power and getting slipped too easily.

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2023 STATISTICS

— 12 starts at left guard

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NOTES

— 4-star recruit from the 2020 class, per 247Sports

— Originally committed and played for three seasons at Alabama, starting 24 games at guard before transferring to Miami prior to the 2023 season

— 36 career starts, primarily at left guard

— Accepted his invite to the Senior Bowl

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OVERALL

Javion Cohen is a three-year starter at left guard, including 13 starts inside Miami's balanced, inside zone/duo-based run scheme in 2023. Cohen has a thick, strapping build with a wide-bodied frame, middling athletic ability and solid play strength.

Cohen wins by playing square and maximizing his girth and size on vertical double-teams to cover up and secure the first-level defender in the post with heavy hands, forearms and shoulders to deliver jarring collisions on second-level targets in confined spaces. He can engulf and blot out defenders on angle-drive blocks and works hard to strain and stay attached against shed attempts, but he has shaky sustain skills due to a stiff lower half, high pad level and middling reactionary quickness.

In pass protection, Cohen does a nice job playing square, delivering stiff, independent strikes and engulfing tightly aligned rushers while bringing a physical presence when uncovered on adjacent rushers. Things quickly break down against wider rush alignments and even tighter aligned rushers who can set up their moves, exposing Cohen's lower-half stiffness and minimal ability to recover out of compromising positions.

Overall, Cohen is a strapping, physical, heavy-handed and heavy-footed presence at guard who can bang and plug gaps against pure power rushers and run defenders. However, he will struggle to mirror and sustain blocks consistently against NFL competition due to his upright, rigid playing style, signaling a low-upside depth piece at guard.

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GRADE: 5.8 (Backup/Draftable — 6th-7th Round)

OVERALL RANK: 193

POSITION RANK: IOL25

PRO COMPARISON: Jared Hocker

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Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn

Visit B/R's NFL Scouting Department hub for scouting reports on all of the top prospects.

Miami tight end Cam McCormick announced Thursday that he will be returning for his ninth and final season of college football.

Appreciate all of the support! #84Resilient #GoCanes pic.twitter.com/KKYlI2jO8P

— Cam (@McCormick_Cam) January 18, 2024

McCormick, a 247Sports 3-star recruit, enrolledat Oregon before the 2016 season. He entered college football alongside some notable college (and future NFL) stars, per Bruce Feldman of The Athletic.

Miami tight end Cam McCormick announces he will return for his NINTH season of college football. He was in the same HS recruiting class as Rashan Gary, Nick Bosa and Jalen Hurts. McCormick battled thru season-ending injuries in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021. https://t.co/8XDKz5kRou

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 18, 2024

He redshirted his freshman year before playing in 2017, appearing in all 13 games and registering six catches for 89 yards and a touchdown.

Unfortunately, McCormick then sat nearly all of 2018-2021 "due to a broken left ankle that required three surgeries and tore his right Achilles against Ohio State in 2021," per James Crepea of The Oregonian. He played in just one game in 2018, none in 2019 and 2020, and two in 2021.

Undeterred, McCormick returned for the 2022 season, playing all 13 games and compiling 10 receptions for 66 yards and three touchdowns. He also won the Capital One Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award.

McCormick transferred to Miami one year after his old Oregon head coach, Mario Cristobal, left for the Hurricanes. He played another 13 games in 2023 (eight catches, 62 yards).

McCormick was granted a ninth year of eligibility by the NCAA after suffering the Achilles injury against Ohio State. He initially wasn't sure if he would use that year, but now he's officially back in the mix.

Per Cameron Solano of CBS Sports, the 25-year-old is the first player in college football history to receive nine years of eligibility.

NFL fans will have to wait one more year before quarterback Cam Ward takes the gridiron.

The former Washington State signal caller announced on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that he would be transferring to the University of Miami.

✍🏾 pic.twitter.com/bRUdvXJsd5

— Cameron Ward (@Cameron7Ward) January 14, 2024

Ward originally entered the transfer portal in December but then declared for the 2024 NFL Draft on New Year's Day. He has now reneged on that decision and will contend with Albany transfer Reese Poffenbarger for the Hurricanes starting quarterback position.

Ward began his collegiate career at FCS Incarnate Word in 2020 and won the Jerry Rice Award for most outstanding FCS freshman player. He threw for nearly 7,000 yards and had 71 touchdowns to 14 interceptions in his two seasons with the program.

He would transfer to Washington State for the 2022 season and was excellent in his two seasons with the Cougars, throwing for 6,968 yards with 48 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He was viewed as one of the top transfer portal quarterbacks before declaring, and reportedly was viewed as a Day 2 or Day 3 pick at the NFL Draft.

Instead, he will look to help the Hurricanes take a step forward after a 7-6 season that ended with a loss to Rutgers in the Pinstripe Bowl.

The Miami Hurricanes have their quarterback from the transfer portal.

Per ESPN's Pete Thamel, the Hurricanes looked to the FCS ranks and grabbed Albany quarterback Reese Poffenbarger.

"Albany will forever have a place in my heart and we did a lot of special things," Poffenbarger said, per Thamel. "At the end of the day, I thought it was time to move on and put myself in the best position to compete for a national championship and one day play in the NFL."

Poffenbarger led the FCS in passing touchdowns and yards with 36 and 3,603 respectively. He helped Albany have the best turnaround in Division I football, going from 3-8 in 2022 to 11-4 in 2023 and advancing to the FCS semifinals.

The Hurricanes had been linked to former Power Five quarterbacks like Will Howard and Cam Ward during the earlier stages of the transfer portal, but Howard (Ohio State) and Ward (NFL draft) went elsewhere.

As a result, the Hurricanes will now turn to Poffenbarger, who will have the opportunity to showcase what he can do against higher competition.

The Hurricanes went 7-6 in 2023, losing out to Rutgers in the Pinstripe Bowl. It was the second season under head coach Mario Cristobal and Miami was committed to a shakeup at the quarterback position.

This led to incumbent starter Tyler Van Dyke entering the portal and eventually landing with the Wisconsin Badgers. Miami will hope to have Poffenbarger emulate the aforementioned Ward, who initially transferred to Washington State from FCS Incarnate Word and became one of the better Power Five signal-callers and eventually entered his name in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Washington State transfer quarterback Cameron Ward will reportedly decide between joining the Miami Hurricanes or entering the 2024 NFL draft, according to Pete Nakos of On3.

Ward was reportedly "looking at" Florida State as a potential option as well, though ESPN's Pete Thamel reported on Sunday that the Seminoles have identified Oregon State transfer quarterback DJ Uiagalelei as their top target in the portal:

Sources: DJ Uiagalelei has emerged as Florida State’s top target in the NCAA transfer portal. He’s yet to commit, but the sides are expected to engage in the near future. Uiagalelei visited there earlier in December and he’s been expected to choose between FSU and the NFL. pic.twitter.com/oCosallUdX

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 1, 2024

Ward was considered the No. 3 quarterback in the transfer portal this offseason, per 247Sports, the No. 8 transfer option overall and remains the top-ranked quarterback yet to change teams. Uiagalelei is No. 72 overall in those rankings.

Returning to school would make sense for Ward, who is ranked just 202nd on Pro Football Focus' 2024 NFL draft big board.

The 21-year-old threw for 3,735 yards, 25 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2023, completing 66.6 percent of his passes while taking 38 sacks. He also rushed for 144 yards and eight touchdowns, though the Cougars finished just 5-7.

Both Washington State and Oregon State are the only remaining Pac-12 schools, with the rest of the conference departing to either the Big Ten, Big 12 or ACC next season. Both will play a limited Mountain West schedule next year, so it isn't shocking to see the starting quarterbacks from those schools potentially choose a team from a Power-5 conference instead.

The Hurricanes were always expected to chase a veteran option at the position in the transfer portal after Tyler Van Dyke decided to leave the program this winter. Emory Williams and Jacurri Brown remain as potential options at the position, though neither has an abundance of experience.

Ward would be the clear favorite to win the starting job, in other words, and would give himself another year to bolster his draft stock. It feels like a win-win for both sides.

The Miami Hurricanes have landed a huge commitment from a 5-star prospect in the class of 2024.

Five-star defensive lineman Justin Scott has flipped his commitment from the Ohio State Buckeyes to Miami, according to Hayes Fawcett of On3.

"From the first time they offered me to now they have never changed. Even when I committed they still recruited me and emphasized the need for my position there," Scott told Fawcett. "I've built so many strong relationships there as well with everybody on the staff."

Scott added that his relationship with the Miami coaching staff also helped sway his decision to flip his commitment.

"I am closest with Coach Schrum, Coach Salavea, Coach Cristobal and Coach Taylor," Scott said. "They plan on using me from the 3 to like 6 so really just playing everywhere on the D-line."

Scott is the No. 12 ranked player and the No. 3 ranked defensive lineman in the class of 2024, per 247Sports' composite rankings. He attends St. Ignatius in Chicago.

Landing Scott is huge for Mario Cristobal and his staff as they aim to bring Miami back to prominence.

Miami now has the No. 5-ranked recruiting class in 2024 behind Georgia, Ohio State, Florida State and Alabama, per 247Sports. While Scott is the program's only 5-star commitment, the Hurricanes have landed 12 commitments from 4-star prospects.

247Sports national recruiting analyst Allen Trieu wrote of Scott:

Has prototypical size and athletic ability for the position. Bends well, gets off the ball quickly and can beat blockers with initial quickness. Closes to the ball with speed as well. For a taller interior defensive lineman, he generally does a good job with pad level and his flexibility helps with that. Not often challenged in high school with offensive linemen with similar size and talent. Will have to show he can disengage from Power Five level offensive linemen. Has great upside though and actually could play high-level offensive line if he wanted to also, but projects as a defensive tackle that can play for any school and in any scheme in the country.

Aside from Miami and Ohio State, Scott also received offers from Georgia, Alabama, Michigan, Arkansas, Auburn, Colorado, Florida, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, USC, Washington and numerous others.

HEIGHT: 5'11"

WEIGHT: 203

HAND: 9¾"

ARM: 31¼"

WINGSPAN: 75"

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40-YARD DASH: 4.65

3-CONE:

SHUTTLE:

VERTICAL: 35"

BROAD: 9'2"

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POSITIVES

— Fluid athlete with good movement skills. Good coverage skills that show his quick feet and ability to drive on the ball.

— Plays with good awareness and play recognition. Triggers quickly to what he sees and has the ability to read and react to the quarterback's eyes.

— High-motor athlete who flies around the field. Does a great job of closing ground on the ball-carrier.

— Stout defender at the point of attack with tackles and when taking on blocks. Will run through the ball-carrier like a heat-seeking missile.

— Great ball skills. Excels in getting head around to locate the ball and has the hand-eye coordination and body control necessary to attack the ball in the air.

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NEGATIVES

— Can be lazy in backpedal at times, with high pad level causing him to round breaks and false step at times.

— Takes poor angles at times in both the run and pass game. Can lead to him falling off tackles in the open field and misplaying routes, putting him in bad positions to play the ball.

— Poor eye discipline may cause him to get caught staring in the backfield, causing him to get out of position.

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2023 STATISTICS

— 10 G, 59 TOT, 2.5 TFL, 1.0 SK, 5 INT, 1 TD, 5 PD, 1 FR

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NOTES

— Born Sept. 29, 2002

— 3-star recruit in 2021 class, per 247Sports

— 2023 first-team All-ACC

— 2022 first-team All-American (AP)

— 2022 first-team All-ACC

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OVERALL

Kamren Kinchens is a productive safety from the South Florida area. A highly rated high school safety, he came to Miami and quickly earned playing time his freshman year.

Kinchens was a full-time starter by the end of his freshman season. He is a fluid athlete who has coverage ability in man and deep zone, as well as the physicality to play the run from deep or close to the line of scrimmage.

Kinchens is a versatile defender in the pass game. He has countless snaps as both a deep defender from the one-high look and in man coverage from the slot. He does a good job of playing under control in his backpedal, displaying quick feet to get out of his pedal and drive on the ball.

Kinchens has good route recognition and the ability to read and react to the quarterback's eyes, especially when in underneath coverage. His ball skills shine through with his ability to locate the ball and the range to cover grass. Though he does a good job of anticipating the throw, he has poor eye discipline, allowing double-moves or eye candy to take him out of position in the pass game.

Kinchens also does a great job of playing the run game. He makes quick reads when defending the run and triggers quickly to the line of scrimmage. He has the ability to play from a deep safety position as well as playing from the box.

When identifying where the ball-carrier is, he triggers and works downhill, quickly closing ground and finishing with violent intent. He closes on the ball like a heat-seeking missile and is a stout tackler on contact. Though he is a physical tackler, he lacks security at times and falls off tackles in the open field or allows his poor angles to put him in positions where he isn't able to get the ball-carrier down.

Kinchens' physicality also shows up well when he takes on blocks. He uses his hands well to stone blockers and control them with good leverage and does a great job of disengaging to get to the ball-carrier.

Kinchens is one of the top safeties in this year's draft. He has the versatility to play in multiple schemes in coverage, as well as the physicality to defend the run from multiple levels. Kinchens will need to solidify his tackle security in the NFL, but he has the skills to be an early starter or at least have a role in a team's defense early in his career.

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GRADE: 7.7 (Potential Impact Player — 2nd Round)

OVERALL RANK: 30

POSITION RANK: S2

PRO COMPARISON: Darnell Savage

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Written by B/R NFL Scout Cory Giddings

Visit B/R's NFL Scouting Department hub for scouting reports on all of the top prospects.

HEIGHT: 6'4"

WEIGHT: 303

HAND: 9"

ARM: 33⅞"

WINGSPAN: 80⅝"

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40-YARD DASH: 5.12

3-CONE: 7.81

SHUTTLE:

VERTICAL: 30"

BROAD: 9'1"

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POSITIVES

— Good get-off, quick to react to the snap and accelerates off the ball well, allowing him to occasionally get penetration off the snap.

— Strong and physical at the point of attack against the run. Has little to no issue getting extension against offensive linemen and can gain control of the block.

— Has good quickness for his size to help make offensive linemen miss against the run and help win as a pass-rusher.

— Shown a few solid pass-rush moves he can win with like an arm over, stick, club-by and hand swipe.

— Good pass-rush motor to get coverage sacks.

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NEGATIVES

— Pad level out of his stance is inconsistent and often too high, causing him issues against double-teams and when bull-rushing.

— Drops his hands when rushing the passer, limiting how frequently he wins with finesse moves as a pass-rusher.

— Needs to finish pass-rush moves with a stronger rip to keep offensive linemen from hanging onto him and get more clean wins.

— Shaky gap discipline against the run. Will pop his gap early and leave his assignment before the running back commits.

— Underwhelming production.

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2023 STATISTICS

— 10 G, 19 TOT, 3.5 TFL, 1.0 SK

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NOTES

— Born May 29, 2003

— 5-star recruit in 2021 class, per 247Sports

— Injuries: 2023 (Undisclosed, missed all spring practices), 2022 (Foot, left one game early)

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OVERALL

Leonard Taylor III's 2022 tape was better than this past season's, as it looks like he put on some extra weight. That helped him at the point of attack against the run but has come at the detriment of his quickness and athleticism.

With that being said, his movement skills are still at least solid, and he did start to return to form at the end of the year as he got in better shape.

Overall, Taylor has the potential to be a fairly complete player. He has a good frame, is hard to move with one-on-one blocks against the run and has shown a few pass-rush moves he can win with. His biggest flaw is his pad level, which is the primary cause of many of his issues. When the Hurricane does keep his pads down, he's hard to block and very disruptive.

Schematically, Taylor would be best as a 3-technique in even fronts but could play as a 4i-tech for an odd-front team if need be.

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GRADE: 6.9 (Potential Role Player/Contributor — 4th Round)

OVERALL RANK: 94

POSITION RANK: DL11

PRO COMPARISON: Javon Hargrave

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Written by B/R NFL Scout Matt Holder

Visit B/R's NFL Scouting Department hub for scouting reports on all of the top prospects.

Mario Cristobal is not taking his season-and-reputation-altering decision to not kneel the ball Saturday against Georgia Tech lightly.

On his Monday morning radio show, the Miami head coach took full responsibility for the decision, which resulted in a costly fumble and ultimately spearheaded Georgia Tech's game-winning drive.

"There's no way to rationalize it. It's the wrong decision. Should've kneeled it," Cristobal said on Audacy's AM 560 Sports WQAM.

With Georgia Tech out of timeouts with 1:18 remaining and Miami holding a 20-17 lead, Cristobal made the odd decision to run plays rather than kneel out the clock. While the first run went off without a hitch, Donald Chaney Jr. coughed up the ball with 33 seconds remaining on the second.

The Yellow Jackets went 74 yards down the field in 25 seconds to take the lead in what was one of the most confounding losses in recent college football history.

Cristobal admitted after the game the team should have taken the knee, but it's worth pointing out that this was seemingly an internal strategy rather than a one-off goof. Miami did not kneel down at the end of any of its first four victories to start the 2023 season.

While it's understandable to set a tone to play through the final whistle, there's such a thing as just taking the win and getting out of the stadium. The overwhelming odds are Cristobal will never make such a blunder again.

The Miami Hurricanes football team snatched defeat from the jaws of victory on Saturday.

Miami led Georgia Tech 20-17 with 34 seconds remaining in regulation. The Hurricanes possessed the ball on a 3rd-and-10 from the Georgia Tech 30-yard line. The Yellow Jackets had no timeouts, so one kneeldown would have ended the game.

This was an easy call for victory formation, giving Miami a 5-0 record in the process.

Inexplicably, Miami called for a running play. Donald Chaney Jr., who had a solid game with 103 rushing yards on 23 carries, fumbled after a throng of Yellow Jackets tackled him. Georgia Tech defensive lineman Kyle Kennard recovered the ball, giving his team a shot at a miracle from its own 26-yard line with 25 seconds left.

Quarterback Haynes King found Malik Rutherford on a 30-yard pass two plays later. After an incomplete pass, King defied all odds with a 44-yard touchdown strike to Christian Leary with one second remaining.

“That’s one of the biggest coaching mistakes at this level that I have ever seen in my lifetime.”

Miami could've taken a knee and closed out Georgia Tech. Instead ... disaster struck 😳 pic.twitter.com/I5vAvtn78p

— ESPN (@espn) October 8, 2023

Miami had one final shot but fumbled again, leading to one of the most remarkable finishes in recent college football memory.

Credit to Georgia Tech for taking advantage of the situation and completing an amazing comeback, but the bullseye is on Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal, who admitted postgame that he should have told quarterback Tyler Van Dyke to take a knee:

Mario Cristobal after losing to Georgia Tech: "Should've told him to take a knee." pic.twitter.com/dw8kaKsSts

— RJ Young (@RJ_Young) October 8, 2023

He also offered an explanation for why he didn't ask Van Dyke to go into victory formation:

Cristobal on why the team didn't take a knee in the final seconds of the game.#GoCanes || #ItsAllAboutTheU || @CanesFootball pic.twitter.com/vh8h3dhdoe

— Gabriel Garcia (@Gabewritesports) October 8, 2023

Needless to say, bewilderment and confusion took centerstage from a host of analysts and fans alike.

If you give me 80 million dollars right now, I do not promise you much, but I do promise you this: I know how clocks work.

— Jane Coaston 🏔️ (@janecoaston) October 8, 2023

“WTF are we doing?”

That’s kinda what everyone is wondering. I can’t believe any of that happened. https://t.co/QJIfoNIw6m

— Scott Van Pelt (@notthefakeSVP) October 8, 2023

Not 1st time, Mario Cristobal not taking a knee cost him. In 2018, Oregon fumbled w/51 seconds left, Stanford gets tying FG & wins 38-31 in OT https://t.co/aUUhTD9DPX

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) October 8, 2023

https://twitter.com/alex_kirshner/status/1710866952036479142

You should be able to fire a coach for cause for this https://t.co/Wfxv3G9xEI

— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) October 8, 2023

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes https://t.co/ALyanUmBTi

— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) October 8, 2023

Athletic directors should include basic clock management questions in the interview process.

— Ken Goodrich (@KenGoodrich) October 8, 2023

Instead of spending offseason sending emails threatening his staff if they talked more to local writers, Cristobal should have worked on simple math instead. What a joke.

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) October 8, 2023

https://twitter.com/BenDuBose/status/1710863193290002913

Coaching malpractice in Miami. @GeorgiaTechFB needs to get on the plane & get out of dodge because they stole one. Canes should have been in “victory formation” & they fumble a running play. @accnetwork analyst Tim
Hasselbeck was all over this!

— Fran Fraschilla (@franfraschilla) October 8, 2023

The coaching malpractice in Miami is going to keep me up at night.

— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) October 8, 2023

After other schools paid to take their coach off their hands, any fan bases happier than Oregon and Louisville tonight?

— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) October 8, 2023

What a stupid coaching disaster by Miami. Take three knees and go home. Coaching stupidly 101

— Pete Prisco (@PriscoCBS) October 8, 2023

Wheeeeeeee pic.twitter.com/PPwE4aSLS5

— Sickos Committee (@SickosCommittee) October 8, 2023

Miami literally F'd around and found out.

I can't believe what I just watched.

Cristobal has dealt with a lot of things trying to rebuild this program, but with a 5-0 start in your grasp, to give it away has to sting.

Gotta wonder how this team will respond.

wow.

— Sanjay Kirpalani (@SanjayKirpalani) October 8, 2023

Mario Cristobal's tinnitus just blaring "The Sound of Silence"

— Patrick Daugherty (@RotoPat) October 8, 2023

That’s a burn the program to the ground loss for Miami. I seriously cannot believe that just happened.

— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) October 8, 2023

Cristobal has found himself in this situation before when he was Oregon's head coach. Kneeldowns would have given his Ducks a 31-28 win over Stanford during a Sept. 22, 2018 game, but that did not happen.

I completely forgot Mario Cristobal had almost the EXACT same thing happen to him in the 2018 Oregon-Stanford game, ran the ball instead of kneeling and fumbled. pic.twitter.com/uOX0KzRn5Z

— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) October 8, 2023

This is literally the easiest part of the job https://t.co/1bt4hre4K8

— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) October 8, 2023

Miami will look to move forward next Saturday with a visit to North Carolina.