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 was mired by injuries early in his career. He came in as the crown jewel offensive lineman for the 2020 class. This year, however, Rivers’ play was fantastic. The starting left tackle for the Canes out of necessity, Rivers posted the best PFF of his career with a solid PFF of 75.3. Rivers had a 75.4 PFF passing grade for the season and a solid 69.9 run-blocking grade this year. Rivers is one of the best offensive linemen for the Canes in a year where the Canes’ offensive line was among the best in the nation. If he decides to come back for 2024 and moves inside, Rivers might be even better as his natural position is at guard, not tackle.
Result: Fourth-Year Redshirt Sophomore
Xavier Restrepo
Restrepo had one reception for 12 yards in 2020, so in reality, he played for three years at Miami. He had a decent sophomore campaign with 24 receptions for 373 yards and two touchdowns. He was expected to be TVD’s main weapon last year but was hurt early in the season, missing significant time. This year, Restrepo exploded for 993 yards and five touchdowns. Restrepo finished the year with a fantastic 85.3 PFF and will have a chance to hit 1,000 yards if he decides to play in the bowl game.
Result: Fourth-Year Junior
Contributors Of the 2020 class
For the 2020 class, there were only six players that looked like Power Five caliber players. Those players are:
* TVD
* Jalen Rivers
* Xavier Restrepo
* Don Chaney Jr.
* Corey Flagg Jr.
* Jaylan Knighton
Of those, only TVD, Rivers, and Restrepo had consistent stretches where star potential was displayed. Only Restrepo, Rivers, and surprisingly Flagg Jr. demonstrated that when fully healthy, they could sustain a high level of play throughout an entire season.
At least 14 of the players that transferred showed they were G5 or Division-II type players, regardless of what their ranking was in high school. Most of the players who transferred to G5 schools from the 2020 class were not able to make much of an impact, if any, outside of Knighton, Elijah Roberts and Key ‘Shawn Smith to a lesser extent, who found success at SMU playing teams that are tiers below ACC competition.
Important takeaways from the findings above:
First, there are different tiers of four stars. Just because a recruiting service ranks you as a four-star does not mean that player is going to play like a blue-chip type player at the next level. Body type, measurements, and traits are extremely important. The four and five stars and even three stars that have offers from the top teams in the country are usually a better indicator of truly talented players than just their star rating.
Second, development is important. Miami had talented players in their 2020 class, and only a few were developed. Many of these players were “dead weight” on Miami’s roster, were unplayable, and many of the playable ones were turnover prone or average in general.
If Miami is to take the next step, the recruiting needs to improve like it has in the past two years. Two potential top-7 classes, with the 2024 class trending as a top five with potential to be top 3, is a great start. Many of the players Miami is battling for have offers from the blue bloods of college football.
Currently, Miami’s challenge is to develop the classes sot the majority of their recruits turn into contributors at the star level with a higher percentage of superstars and star players than in years past.
This detailed analysis of the 2020 Canes recruiting class underscores the complexities of college football recruiting. While initial rankings and star ratings provide a baseline, they don’t guarantee future success. Player development, adaptation to college-level play, and maintaining performance under pressure are critical factors that determine the ultimate contribution of recruits to their teams. Miami’s experience with the 2020 class provides valuable lessons in scouting, recruitment strategies, and the importance of player development, essential for building a consistently competitive program.
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