Miami Hurricanes News and Notes: ACC Media Day, Kendrick Norton Update, NFL Training Camp

Good morning Canes Fam.

State of Declarations

With some progress from last season, earning some commits on the recruiting trail and establishing his presence online, UM WR coach Taylor Stubblefield has made a favorable impression in a short period. Marshall Thomas highlights the feats of the new coach.

The Hurricanes have lost defensive ends Chad Thomas, Trent Harris and Joe Jackson to the NFL in the span of two years. SOTU’s Marshall Thomas predicts that the combination of Trevon Hill and Jonathan Garvin could be a lethal tandem in the spirit of an excellent lineage of edge rushers.

One player that is emblematic of Miami’s youth movement in S Gurvan Hall. Our own Cam Underwood breaks down the talented DB the latest edition of our Player Profile series.

SOTU’s Jon Somma wonders what could’ve been for a group of Miami Hurricanes of recent past, with an opportunity to play for #TNM.

Play No. 36 in our 100 Greatest Plays in Miami History highlights a touchdown drive led by QB Bernie Kosar and punctuated for the score by WR Eddie Brown.

Gerald Willis III has moved on to the NFL. The Hurricanes are going to need to find new answers in the middle of the defensive line. John Michaels outlines the next men up and predicts the depth chart ahead of the season.

Kendrick Norton Released From the Hospital

Yesterday, Kendrick Norton was released from Jackson Memorial Hospital. The defensive tackle had his left arm amputated after a tragic car accident earlier this month. Norton underwent six surgeries since the incident. State of the U and all those in the Canes fanbase continue to wish Big No. 7 well on his road to recovery.

ACC Media Day Recap

On Thursday, the Miami Hurricanes took to the podium for the second day of the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Media Day in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hurricanes were represented by head coach Manny Diaz, WR KJ Osborn and LB Shaq Quarterman. Here are some of the highlights.

Staying with KJ Osborn, the senior wideout was named to the Fred Biletnikoff Award (Best WR in the Nation) watch list on Thursday.

Who Won’t be at Camp Next Week

Transfers S Bubba Bolden, DE/LB Jaelan Phillips, LB Avery Huff and DE Trevon Hill are not expected to be in attendance when the Hurricanes open training camp next week. Bolden is completing a summer class, that will require him to miss the early portion of practices. For Phillips, Huff and Hill, all seem to be waiting on some final eligibility issues to be ironed out according to reports.

Linebackers Waymon Steed and Bradley Jennings. Jr are not expected to participate in camp with what is being termed as “long-term injuries.” According to reports, sophomore LB Patrick Joyner will be limited when practice begins with a lower leg injury suffered in the offseason.

Recruiting News

Despite Miami’s coaches being unable to contact recruits for almost a month now, the Canes have been able to haul in four commits (DE Quentin Williams, LB Tirek Austin-Cave, WR Michael Redding III, and LB/DL Romello Height) since the start of the quiet period.

UM could increase that number to five, as Oakleaf DE Chantz Williams is set to announce his college decision on Saturday. According to the fine folks at 247 Sports, the four-star prospect has seven crystal ball predictions that project the standout pass rusher to be a Hurricane. Recently, Williams put on a show at Nike’s The Opening early this month.

The 305 Beat

Christy Chirinos of the Sun Sentinel got some answers from UM head coach Manny Diaz, WR KJ Osborn and Shaq Quarterman as the trio held court at ACC Media Day. Chirinos also penned an article surrounding the players who will/won’t be in attendance to start camp next week

Coach Manny Diaz joined the 560 WQAM’s Joe Rose in an interview where he discussed topics ranging from the QB situation to whether the offense will receive their own version of the Turnover Chain in 2019. Susan Miller Degnan of the Miami Herald recaps all the topics brought up in the interview.

ProCanes NFL Updates

Welcome to Camp Rook!

Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

The Hurricanes will begin training camp next week. However, some former Canes will get a headstart on their NFL career. Here’s a list of ProCane rookies set to report in the days to come.

Baltimore Ravens (July 17) — DT Gerald Willis III

Seattle Seahawks (July 17) — RB Travis Homer

New England Patriots (July 21) — OL Tyree St. Louis, C Tyler Gauthier

Minnesota Vikings (July 22) — DT Tito Odenigbo

Buffalo Bills (July 22) — S Jaquan Johnson

Cleveland Browns (July 24) — S Sheldrick Redwine, CB Jhavonte Dean, RB Trayone Gray

Dallas Cowboys (July 26) — DE Joe Jackson, Michael Jackson Sr.

Doc-U-series Friday

A pair of documentary series focused on the football field make their debut today. I’ve already spoken about Amazon Prime’s All or Nothing that focuses on the 2018 season of the Carolina Panthers. Here’s a quick teaser of ProCane TE Greg Olsen using the battle-royale game of Fortnite as a motivational tool for WR Curtis Samuel.

The second docu-series making its debut is Netflix’s Last Chance U. For a consecutive season, Independence Community College remains the team in the spotlight for the coming year. While there isn’t a Canes connection on Independence, the team did play Hutchinson CC, former home of current UM guard Ousman Traore.

Beason Continues to Shine for UM

Former Hurricanes linebacker Jon Beason will make his debut in front of the camera when the ACC Network launches next month. In an official release from ESPN, “The Beast” is set to fill the role of studio analyst next month.

Frank Gore Autograph Signing

Before he heads to Upstate New York, Buffalo Bills RB Frank Gore will be holding an autograph session in Hialeah, Florida later today.

ProCanes (NBA) Notes

NBA Summer League concluded last week, with the Memphis Grizzlies winning the Vegas Summer League championship. The tourney was rookie Raptors forward Dewan Hernandez’s first foray into pro basketball. Check out what he had to say about his Raptors debut in this clip.

Ask anyone that watched Summer League and they would tell you that Spurs G Lonnie Walker IV was a menace in every game. Walker was named a second-team member of the All-NBA Summer League squad — it should’ve been a First Team nod. In the meantime, the ProCane held his first ever basketball camp in his hometown of Reading, Pennsylvania.

Have a Great Day and Go Canes!