With 10 days to National Signing Day, and after several recent developments on the recruiting trail, it’s time to ask a serious question:
What’s going on with Defensive Line recruiting?
The Miami Hurricanes signed 19 players during the Early Signing Period in December, but only one — DE Gregory Rousseau — was a defensive lineman. Miami also holds a commitment from 4-star DT Nesta Silvera, but he hasn’t signed yet. All reports point to Silvera sticking with his commitment to Miami and signing on February 7th, so that’s a good thing.
But, beyond the already-enrolled Rousseau and long-time commit Silvera, where are the defensive linemen in this class for Miami?
Miami just had an OUTSTANDING season, with the defensive line being one of the key components to that success. Furthermore, Miami plays a good and fun 1-gap, penetrating system for linemen, unlike the previous 2-gap, read-and-react scheme employed by the previous coaching staff. And, with the attrition from the roster (we’ll get to the names in a bit) there is a metric ton of playing time available.
According to an anonymous Power 5 assistant coach: “...the fact that Miami isn’t landing dudes on the defensive line after the season they had (turnover chain, Kendrick Norton playing leg-guitar against FSU, etc) should be extremely alarming.”
I don’t know if I’d go that far, but I’d agree that there is much to be desired in the DL recruiting to this point
Part of the issue is scarcity of resources. The DL crop in Florida is quite bad in comparison to recent, and future, years. This is a big deal and can’t be overlooked. The amount of top end talent at the position group in-state this cycle is, quite simply, bad. Especially when you isolate DTs. Sure, there are some players (we’ll get to names in a moment) but the number of such players isn’t advantageous for Miami.
So, with limited resources (i.e. players to recruit of Miami caliber) locally in this class, closing on a LARGE proportion of the available players immediately became a must for Miami. But that didn’t happen.
DT target Dennis Briggs committed to FSU on Sunday. DE target Andrew Chatfield seems to be trending toward committing to Florida. And......there’s just a lot of nothing on the horizon.
Yes, Miami is trying their best to flip Texas DT commit Keondre Coburn, but a good Official Visit and in-home visit with Coach Mark Richt (his only chance to go in-home with Coburn) could be quickly undone by a forthcoming in-home visit with Texas Head Coach Tom Herman. So, that’s a longshot at best.
All-American DT Michael Thompson hasn’t scheduled and likely won’t take a visit to Miami. Neither will fast-rising DT Moro Ojomo. DE/DT Daniel Carson, who visited Coral Gables back in December, recently committed to Texas. JUCO DE/DT Dorian Gerald announced a top 5 that didn’t have Miami in it, and he won’t even take a visit. Miami ha been linked to other players along the DL throughout this cycle, but none of them have even so much as taken a visit to Coral Gables.
Miss after miss after miss.
DT target Jamarcus Chatman will visit Miami this upcoming weekend, but he’s very impressionable (based upon his interviews, the most recent school he’s visited has always vaulted to the top of his list), so hopefully he settles himself after visiting FSU last weekend (along with Briggs, who subsequently committed) and takes his visit to Miami.
DT Jordan Miller was an unknown on the trail until last week when Miami offered. He’s had several P5 teams offer him in the recent weeks, and he’ll visit Miami this upcoming weekend as well.
LATE EDIT: Miller committed to Miami on Monday night. He will still visit this weekend, but he should be locked down.
#WelcomeToTheU, Jordan Miller. 3-star DT @millj70 commits to #Canes, adds big body to 2018 recruiting class. #TheU https://t.co/BhJBnQdAlB pic.twitter.com/mbU7rPSYWO
— StateOfTheU.com (@TheStateOfTheU) January 30, 2018
Remaining Targets
So now, with mere days to NSD, Miami’s DL target list is as follows
- DT Nesta Silvera (commit)
- DE Andrew Chatfield
- DT Jamarcus Chatman
- DT Jordan Miller - committed Monday.
For a team of Miami’s caliber, and with loads of playing time to offer having lost Chad Thomas, Trent Harris, and Anthony Moten to graduation, Kendrick Norton, RJ McIntosh to the NFL draft, and DJ Johnson to transfer off the DL, and the best DL coach in the game for my money, a target list of that construction is simply unacceptable.
Silvera will stick with Miami by all accounts. But with Chatfield potentially (likely?) going to Florida, and Chatman being a wildcard, and Miller being a new-to-the-scene recruit who has size and some skill at DT and just recently committed to Miami on Monday, there is MUCH to be desired.
Every cycle, it seems Miami has one position in the recruiting class that doesn’t meet the standard. That can be on number of recruits, or size, or speed, or skill. In recent years, it’s been RB. A couple years ago, it was WR. This year, clearly, it’s defensive line.
Rousseau is in the boat already, Silvera is likely to join, and maybe Chatman or Miller — hopefully both — will as well. Flipping Coburn and getting Chatfield would be the best case scenario, by FAR....and it’s pretty unlikely, if we’re being honest.
At this time, DL recruiting is seriously lagging behind every team in-state, and that’s a problem.
Not only has Miami lost the players listed above, but the Canes will lose Gerald Willis III and Demetrius Jackson to graduation this year. Grad transfer Tito Odenigbo will go after 2018, too. AND, star DE Joe Jackson could leave early for the NFL, and there’s always attrition that could be forthcoming as well.
Where are the replacements for that talent drain? Where are the new goons? Where is the next Jonathan Garvin off the edge? Where is the next big-time DT inside to disrupt plays? Where’s even a Kendrick Norton, a big developmental DT who can play snaps as a freshman before blossoming into an every down terror for the opposition in years 2-4?
Miami still has talent on the roster at DL, and getting Silvera will be a big help. But he’s only 1 man, and additional help is needed.
Possible Solutions to the problem
Everybody knows, or has figured out through the first part of this piece, that there are major issues with defensive line recruiting. I’m sorry, but there are. BUT, I’m not just going to sit and throw stones, I’m going to try to offer solutions. Here are 4:
Go get an ace defensive recruiter on staff immediately
Look, I think Coach Kool (Craig Kuligowski for those wondering) is the best DL coach in the business, and I’ll stand by that. But, it’s clear that his coaching is better than his recruiting, so it’s time to get him help. Somebody like former FAU coach Charlie Partridge as LB coach, for example, would fit the bill here.
Which leads me to my next point...
Give Kool more help on the trail
In a perfect world, the aforementioned “ace defensive recruiter” would be the 10th assistant coach, and could help recruit anywhere on the defensive side. I’d put this person in primary control of offers and recruiting, with Kool taking a back seat in recruiting and then handling the on-field coaching, an area in which he has more than 20 years of demonstrated excellence.
Let Coach Kool coach and let (insert ace recruiter) recruit. The best chefs rarely do their own grocery shopping, so let’s get a personal shopper in here and let Kool cook.
Balance the board/star chasing
I know that the in-state crop of DL this cycle wasn’t the greatest, and there was a need to look out of state to some measure, but Miami has to stop blindly chasing stars from other places just for the sake of “getting stars” in the class.
No, I’m not saying scrape the bottom of the barrel, but if you miss on those out of state players (which Miami has), then that’s what will happen anyways!
Keep it local, or as close to local as possible, and go from there. Georgia is basically local for this staff, so go there if there aren’t players in Florida, South Florida specifically, who fit what Miami is looking for/are interested in Miami.
But flying out to Alabama to see Malik Langham play basketball 2 weeks before signing day when he’s not coming here, not even for a visit? Why? Devoting tons of time and resources into recruiting St. Louis native Michael Thompson when his most favorable view of Miami was lukewarm at best? What purpose does that serve?
In the meantime, Miami could have gone after guys like Hollywood (FL) Chaminade-Madonna DT Davoan Hawkins or Miami (FL) Southridge DE Randy Charlton. Are they as premium of prospects as Langham or Thompson? No. But they’re not bottom of the barrel players, either. And, for the record, Hawkins and Charlton are going to Kentucky and Indiana, respectively, so they’re P5 players, just maybe not All-ACC guys.
Continue to preach playing time
Have you seen the list of players Miami will have lost off the DL in the last 2 years? Playing time is there, at every position on the DL. That has to be the main recruiting push. “Come in and play”. Period.
Push Norton, McIntosh, and Thomas’ NFL draft status
Miami has had 4 DL drafted in the last 10 years (Calais Campbell, Allen Bailey, Anthony Chickillo, and Al-Quadin Muhammad). Miami could DOUBLE the number of NFL draftees along the DL this year alone (with Anthony Moten being the potential 4th draftee. POTENTIAL, guys. Po-ten-tial).
If 2 years with Coach Kool turned Norton and McIntosh from back of the rotation to top 4 round draft picks, and unlocked much of Chad Thomas’s previously unfulfilled potential, what could he do with 3+ years working with a player? Now, push that narrative to a HSFB player, and say “look, kid, you saw what Kool did in limited time with Big Norton. You’ll be that and MORE with 3+ years here at Miami. High round pick. Get that money and provide for your family.” That would be a secondary recruiting pitch (past IMMEDIATE PLAYING TIME), but a pretty damn good one, if you ask me.
So there you have it. A recap of the state of Miami’s DL recruiting, and some possible, feasible solutions to get the problems fixed.
Thoughts? Feelings? Concerns? That’s what the comments section is for. Hop in there and let me know how you’re feeling after reading this piece.