During his weekly appearance on the Joe Rose Show on WQAM on Monday, Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal said the defensive line and secondary have been the most competitive positions during training camp. The starting cornerbacks seem to be set with safety the more competitive of the two positions.
Tyrique Stevenson returns as the best CB on the Miami Hurricanes roster with West Virginia transfer Darryl Porter Jr. opposite him. Some reports have stated that Stevenson has received time during training camp at the CB-linebacker hybrid star position. Veteran returnees have been competing to be in the CB rotation.
Al Blades Jr. returns after missing most of the last two seasons. Cristobal praised Blades for playing “really, really well.” Miami also returns “DJ Ivey (who Cristobal said:) I can’t speak highly enough of.’ Fourth-Year Junior Te’Cory Couch is also competing for playing time and Cristobal said Malik Curtis has popped out.
Cristobal said of Miami safeties, Kamren Kinchens, Avantae Williams and James Williams “consider those guys co-starters…They’ve got to duke it out each and every week and keep a lot of pressure on each other to see who performs best.’’ Expect all three to be major contributors for Miami on defense this season.
Improved play from the CBs will be critical for Miami in 2022. Miami needs the other CBs to rise to the level Stevenson played at in 2021. Stevenson has room to improve with the potential to be named All-ACC in 2022. The Miami safety trio has the potential to be one of the best in the country in 2022.
Kinchens, Avantae Williams and James Williams played significant roles for Miami as freshmen in 2021. All three should improve in their second season in 2022. James Williams has received several national accolades ahead of the 2022 season. The secondary is one of the deepest positions for Miami in 2022.