Miami Football has ACC Coastal best roster, top 20 nationally
The fault in the ranking of the talent on the rosters is that it does not take into account player development, incoming transfers and attrition. Rousseau finished second in the nation in sacks in 2019 but was a three-star player coming out of high school. Diaz has preached about his talent level since he signed with Miami in 2018.
Quarterback D’Eriq King and defensive end Quincy Roche were also three-star players coming out of high school. They are now mentioned among the best players at their positions. Miami added elite recruits, quarterback Tate Martell, defensive end Jaelan Phillips and safety Bubba Bolden as transfers in 2019.
Class Year | 5 stars | 4 Stars | 3 Stars |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | 0 | 10 | 11 |
2019 | 0 | 7 | 11 |
2018 | 1 | 14 | 8 |
2017 | 0 | 10 | 14 |
2016 | 0 | 9 | 10 |
Total | 1 | 50 | 54 |
The Hurricanes have signed one five-star 247 Sports consensus recruit since 2016, 50 four-star signees and 54 three-star signee. Individually the stars do not matter. As a whole, it is crucial to sign an elite recruiting class. The only five-star signee for Miami since 2016 was running back, Lorenzo Lingard.
Lingard never came close to his potential with the Miami football program after suffering a reason ending knee injury about halfway through his true freshman season in 2018. Several of the four-star players, particularly on the offensive line and at QB have not reached their potential either.
The Hurricanes need to continue to build on adding elite talent and develop those players. The lack of development makes signing four and five-star players meaningless. The job for Diaz and newly hired offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee will depend on getting the best out of the talent and finally getting them to produce.