When we can get back to sports and more specifically the Miami football team, there will be a lot to look forward to in 2020. Defensive end Greg Rousseau proved in 2019 that you don’t have to be a highly ranked recruit to be an elite player.
The Miami football season should give Hurricanes fans something to look forward to with no sports currently scheduled. Led by returning redshirt sophomore Greg Rousseau Miami should have one of the best pass rushes in the nation in 2020. Rousseau was named by ESPN as one of the best players who was not a top recruit.
Greg Rousseau finished second in the nation in 2019 with 15.5 sacks and leads all returnees in 2020. The addition of graduate transfer Quincy Roche from Temple and Jaelan Phillips from UCLA who sat out last season with Miami will make the Hurricanes dominant rushing the passer in 2020.
The Miami defense finished in a three-way tie for seventh with ACC Coastal Division champion Virginia who they defeated last year and Big XII runner-up, Baylor with 46 sacks in 2019. That is just six behind the all-time Miami program record. The 1989 National Champion Miami team had 52.
That number is certainly attainable with Rousseau, Roche and Phillips leading the way. Miami lost junior defensive end, Jonathan Garvin, a year early to the NFL Draft and 2019 Virginia Tech graduate transfer Trevon Hill. Phillips and Roche are likely to be upgrades. ESPN is very impressed with Rousseau’s progress.
"“DE Gregory Rousseau, Miami HurricanesRousseau came out of high school in South Florida just shy of being a four-star prospect. At the time, he was a lanky 6-foot-6, near-220-pound edge rusher, and he has blossomed into a 260-pound edge rushing terror that recorded 15.5 sacks along with 54 tackles as a redshirt freshman for the Hurricanes, earning ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.Rousseau’s ability to gain around 40 pounds while retaining his quickness and flexibility has made him one of college football’s top pass rushers and a top NFL prospect entering his third season on campus in Coral Gables.”"
At 6’6 and just over 250 pounds, Rousseau often played inside on passing downs last season. A former wide receiver and safety in high school he is a freakish athlete for his size who can pose problems because of his length and athleticism. The additions of Roche and Phillips will keep the double teams on Rousseau to a minimum.
As the country gets past what is a very difficult time for all of us, thinking about the Miami football team and the season Rousseau can have wrecking havoc on opposing offenses is something for all Hurricanes fans to look forward in a little less than six months from now. The Miami front four will be fearsome.