Recruiting season is in full swing and Miami is closing in on a top-five class after landing five-star defensive talent Justin Scott. This would be Mario Cristobal’s second consecutive class to finish inside the top ten, a first for Miami in the 247Sports era. There is a waiting period of approximately 3-4 years before recruiting classes can be analyzed.
Enter the dawn of 2024, and we now have enough data to retrospectively review the 2020 enrollees and determine how they contributed to Canes football.
Miami’s 2020 class was Manny Diaz’s first full recruiting class and ranked 17th in the 247Sports Composite. The Canes brought in 21 enrollees, ten of which were four stars and eleven were three stars. The Canes’ highest-ranked commit was Don Chaney Jr., a top 75 prospect nationwide and a top five running back in the nation. The Canes had three prospects in the top-100: Don Chaney, Chantz Williams, and Avantae Williams.
Here is an in-depth class breakdown of the 2020 class:
Don Chaney Jr.
Chaney Jr. battled injuries for most of his career in Miami. In four years, he finished with 175 carries for 852 yards and six touchdowns. Chaney’s injuries prevented him from fulfilling his full potential, and by the time he was healthy, true freshmen Mark Fletcher and Henry Parrish Jr. moved ahead of him on the depth chart.
Result: Entered the transfer portal in 2023
Chantz Williams
A top-85 player on the 247Sports composite, Williams produced 42 total tackles, three pass deflections, and 2.4 sacks in four years at Miami. Williams barely played and was not a significant contributor.
Result: Entered the transfer portal in 2023
Avantae Williams
Williams was the star defensive back for the Canes’ 2020 class. His time at Miami included a lot of broken coverages and undisciplined play. He finished with just one interception in his Miami career and contributed 27 tackles in two years.
Result: Transferred to Maryland
Jaylan Knighton
Knighton came in as a top 250 player nationwide and one of the best running backs in the 2020 class. Knighton had 1,193 yards rushing in three years for Miami with 10 touchdowns on 275 carries. Unfortunately, he had nine fumbles in his Miami career. He had his best season this year for SMU but once again turnovers continued to plague him with two.
Result: Transferred to SMU
Marcus Clarke
Clarke had two interceptions and 29 total tackles in two years at Miami with two passes deflected. Clarke struggled to make a significant impact and get steady rotation minutes.
Result: Transferred to Missouri
Keyshawn Smith
Smith had 48 receptions for 662 yards in three years for Miami and hauled in five touchdowns. He was a rotational piece that struggled with drops and to be a high-impact player.
Result: Transferred to SMU
Michael Redding
His career at Miami has been unimpactful. Redding has 19 receptions for 239 yards and two touchdowns.
Result: Fourth Year Redshirt Sophomore
Isaiah Dunson
A 2020 cornerback for the Canes, Dunson produced only 14 tackles and one pass deflection in two years at Miami.
Result: Transferred to Baylor
Jalen Harrell
One of Miami’s biggest gets in 2020 turned out to be one of their biggest disappointments. Harrell produced only four total tackles for the Canes in two years.
Result: Transferred to Massachusetts
Brian Balom
Balom has produced 14 total tackles in two years at Miami and is barely getting any playing time.
Result: Fourth Year Redshirt Sophomore
Tirek Austin-Cave
Cave came to Miami as one of their crown jewels at the linebacker position. Cave only had 11 total tackles for the Canes in a two-year period. He has had four total tackles in the last two years at WVU.
Result: Transferred to WVU
Quentin Williams
A strong side defensive end from North Carolina, Williams had three total tackles for the Canes in 2020.
Result: Transferred to Marshall
Chris Washington
A three-star tweener offensive lineman from Tennessee, Washington was not a nationally ranked recruit. He didn’t get any meaningful snaps at Miami outside of practice snaps.
Result: Third-Year Redshirt Freshman
Dominic Mammarelli
Mammarelli’s career stats at Miami are one reception for negative two yards.
Result: Entered the transfer portal for 2023
Dazalin Worsham
A wide receiver who was hailed as one of Mike Rumph’s biggest recruiting wins, Worsham was processed from Alabama’s recruiting class and allowed Miami to swoop in and land him late. Worsham never got playing time at Miami, and his career stats include 1 reception for eight yards this year at Auburn.
Result: Transferred to Auburn
Keshawn Washington
Washington got limited burn for the Canes in 2020 and produced just three total tackles.
Result: Entered the transfer portal in 2022
Elijah Roberts
A solid contributor for the Canes, Roberts had 21 total tackles in three years at Miami and 0.5 sacks. A solid rotational player who had talent but was never really able to break through at Miami. He had a very good season at SMU with 18 solo tackles, 9.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles in 2023 for the Mustangs.
Result: Transferred to SMU
Corey Flagg Jr.
Corey Flagg Jr. was one of the most maligned players in recent history. Early on in his career at Miami, especially the first two years, missed tackles and an inability to deal with speedy running backs allowed Miami’s linebacker position to be exploited for big plays. Flagg, who is an extremely intelligent player and one of the hardest working Canes, was seen as a solid G5 type player who just didn’t have the speed to compete at the P5 level, much less at Miami. When Mario Cristobal arrived at Miami and brought in Caleb Johnson, most Canes fans thought that Flagg’s days at the middle linebacker position were over. Instead, Flagg won the starting MLB spot for the Canes and this year had his most solid year, grading as an above-average player and one of the best players on the Canes despite losing the starting spot to Kiko Mauigoa. Flagg Jr. will forever be remembered for his game-winning tackle of Cade Klubnik, helping Miami beat Clemson for the first time in 13 years. In four seasons at Miami, Flagg had 179 total tackles, 5.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one interception, and one pass deflection.
Result: Entered the transfer portal
Tyler Van Dyke
TVD was seen as a future star for the Canes program. His first six games starting he was one of the best quarterbacks in college football. Sadly, the last two years at Miami he was plagued by injuries and turnover issues. He was never able to beat FSU and struggled against the ACC, winning 8 of 19 games in three years. TVD finished his Miami career with 7,478 yards, 54 touchdowns, and 23 interceptions.
Result: Entered the transfer portal in 2023
Jalen Rivers
Rivers se vio afectado por las lesiones al principio de su carrera. Llegó como la joya de la corona liniero ofensivo para la clase 2020. Este año, sin embargo, el juego de Rivers fue fantástico. El tackle izquierdo titular de los Canes por necesidad, Rivers registró el mejor PFF de su carrera con un sólido PFF de 75,3. Rivers obtuvo una calificación PFF de 75,4 en pases durante la temporada y una sólida calificación de 69,9 en bloqueo de carrera este año. Rivers es uno de los mejores linieros ofensivos de los Canes en un año en el que la línea ofensiva de los Canes estuvo entre las mejores de la nación. Si decide regresar para 2024 y se traslada al interior, Rivers podría ser aún mejor, ya que su posición natural es la de guardia, no la de tackle.
Resultado: Xavier Restrepo
Xavier Restrepo
Restrepo tuvo una recepción para 12 yardas en 2020, por lo que, en realidad, jugó durante tres años en Miami. Tuvo una campaña decente de segundo año con 24 recepciones para 373 yardas y dos touchdowns. Se esperaba que fuera el arma principal de TVD el año pasado, pero se lesionó a principios de la temporada, perdiéndose un tiempo significativo. Este año, Restrepo logró 993 yardas y cinco touchdowns. Restrepo terminó el año con un fantástico 85,3 PFF y tendrá la oportunidad de llegar a las 1.000 yardas si decide jugar en el partido de la Copa.
Resultado: Junior de cuarto año
Contribuyentes de la clase 2020
Para la clase 2020, sólo hubo seis jugadores que parecían jugadores de calibre Power Five. Esos jugadores son:
* TVD
* Jalen Rivers
* Xavier Restrepo
* Don Chaney Jr.
* Corey Flagg Jr.
* Jaylan Knighton
De ellos, sólo TVD, Rivers y Restrepo tuvieron tramos consistentes en los que mostraron potencial de estrellas. Sólo Restrepo, Rivers y, sorprendentemente, Flagg Jr. demostraron que, cuando estaban completamente sanos, podían mantener un alto nivel de juego durante toda una temporada.
Al menos 14 de los jugadores que se transfirieron demostraron que eran jugadores de tipo G5 o División-II, independientemente de cuál fuera su clasificación en el instituto. La mayoría de los jugadores que se transfirieron a las escuelas G5 de la clase 2020 no fueron capaces de hacer mucho de un impacto, en su caso, fuera de Knighton, Elijah Roberts y Key 'Shawn Smith en menor medida, que encontraron el éxito en SMU jugando en equipos que están por debajo de la competencia ACC.
De los resultados anteriores se desprenden cosas importantes:
En primer lugar, hay diferentes niveles de cuatro estrellas. El hecho de que un servicio de reclutamiento te clasifique como un cuatro estrellas no significa que ese jugador vaya a jugar como un blue-chip en el siguiente nivel. El tipo de cuerpo, las medidas y los rasgos son muy importantes. Las cuatro y cinco estrellas e incluso las tres estrellas que tienen ofertas de los mejores equipos del país suelen ser un mejor indicador de jugadores realmente talentosos que sólo su clasificación por estrellas.
En segundo lugar, el desarrollo es importante. Miami tenía jugadores talentosos en su clase 2020, y sólo unos pocos se desarrollaron. Muchos de estos jugadores eran "peso muerto" en la lista de Miami, no se podía jugar con ellos, y muchos de los que se podía jugar eran propensos a las pérdidas de balón o regulares en general.
Si Miami quiere dar el siguiente paso, el reclutamiento tiene que mejorar como lo ha hecho en los últimos dos años. Dos potenciales clases top-7, con la clase de 2024 tendiendo a ser top-5 con potencial para ser top-3, es un gran comienzo. Muchos de los jugadores por los que Miami está luchando tienen ofertas de la sangre azul del fútbol universitario.
En la actualidad, el reto de Miami es desarrollar las clases para que la mayoría de sus reclutas se conviertan en contribuyentes a nivel de estrellas con un mayor porcentaje de superestrellas y jugadores estrella que en años anteriores.
Este análisis detallado de la clase de reclutamiento de los Canes de 2020 subraya las complejidades del reclutamiento de fútbol universitario. Mientras que las clasificaciones iniciales y las estrellas proporcionan una línea de base, no garantizan el éxito futuro. El desarrollo del jugador, la adaptación al juego universitario y el mantenimiento del rendimiento bajo presión son factores críticos que determinan la contribución final de los reclutas a sus equipos. La experiencia de Miami con la clase 2020 proporciona valiosas lecciones en el scouting, estrategias de reclutamiento, y la importancia del desarrollo del jugador, esencial para la construcción de un programa consistentemente competitivo.
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