Manny Diaz expects transfers to be impact players in 2020

No one has utilized the transfer portal better than Manny Diaz in the last two offseasons. Diaz told the Joe Rose show on Thursday morning that the Hurricanes transfers came to Miami with the expectation of being impact players.

Even coming off of a 6-7 2019 season, Manny Diaz is confident the Miami football program is building something special in Coral Gables. That is at least prevalent with the Hurricanes defensive line. Defensive end Quincy Roche and quarterback D’Eriq King are the marquee transfers for the Miami football team in 2020.

The transfers Miami signed during the 2020 offseason were more about quality than the quantity the Hurricanes signed in 2019. King is much more accomplished than 2019 transfer QB Tate Martell and Roche was the American Athletic Conference 2019 Defensive Player of the Year. Both could be All-American candidates.

Diaz spoke with Rose and co-host Zach Krantz about the impact the transfers could make. He was able to discuss some, but not others. Not everyone has been made official to the Miami football roster. Offensive tackle Jarrid Williams announced his decision to transfer to Miami on Sunday night.

Diaz also went into detail about the process of building a program. Many of the transfers will only have one season to play at Miami. The process of adding talent is much bigger than that. Some transfers like OT Issiah Walker will have four seasons of eligibility with the Hurricanes. Diaz elaborated about the program.

"“I would say (they can be impact players) and that’s why they came…What I like about the guys that came this year is they’re coming to be a part of something and they’re coming because they understand the value they can provide our program and they also understand what’s in place.These things are all weird with our more recent additions so it’s real hard to talk about some specifics of these guys…We’re building a program and that’s what we’re doing.We’ve had two offseasons to have a chance to build a program and that’s how you have a chance to have the season look better—if you start stacking the process of talent evaluation, the process of talent acquisition, and then you get the guys on campus and you develop them the right way, which we’re happy about with what David Feeley is doing in the weight room.That’s how you build a program and that’s how you build a solid foundation and that’s what’s going on right now.”"

Diaz has made it clear he will acquire talent for the Miami football roster however the Hurricanes can. Miami added about seven transfers in 2019 and five this season. Expect the 2020 class of transfers to make a bigger impact. Wide receiver K.J. Osborn made the biggest impact for Miami in 2019.

Osborn led the Hurricanes in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. It’s fair to say that none of the other transfers Miami added through the 2019 portal lived up to expectations. It would be shocking if the same thing happened in 2020. King, Williams, Roche and kicker Jose Borregales are likely starters in 2020.

Walker will be a big part of the future of the Miami offensive line. Redshirt juniors, safety Bubba Bolden and DE Jaelan Phillips who Miami added in 2019 as transfers are likely to have a big impact on the defense. Miami is in the process of signing a top 15 recruiting class for the second straight year, but expect more transfers in 2021.