Miami football made right 2020 RB decisions over Frank Gore Jr.
The Miami football social media verse has questioned why the Miami football program did not sign legacy running back Frank Gore Jr. Miami made the right decisions in the class of 2020 signing RBs Don Chaney Jr. and Jaylan Knighton over Gore. Chaney and Knighton were higher rated than Gore in the class of 2020.
Chaney was the highest-rated RB in Dade County in 2020 out of Belen Jesuit. Knighton was the top-rated RB in Broward County out of Deerfield Beach. One fan stated if Mario Cristobal had been the head coach in 2020 Miami would have signed Gore. With the option of Chaney and Knighton that is highly unlikely.
Chaney was the 114th ranked player, 11th RB and 18th in Florida in the class of 2020. Gore was the 1030th ranked player, 65th ranked RB and 132nd ranked player in Florida in the class of 2020. Knighton was 106th, 10th and 16th when he signed with Miami according to the 247 Sports composite rankings.
After a strong debut season in 2020, Chaney suffered a season-ending knee injury in the second game of the 2021 season. Chaney is expected to miss the first half of the 2022 season with what has been reported as a hip injury. Mississippi transfer Henry Parrish, sophomore Thad Franklin and Knighton are the current Miami RB rotation.
Knighton is expected to return on Saturday versus Southern Mississippi after missing the season opener with an injury.
Knighton is the all-time leading rusher in Broward history
with 5,150 yards. Throughout his Miami career, Knighton has been an explosive RB capable of scoring nearly every time he touches the ball.
Gore Jr. has had a stellar Southern Mississippi career. In just two seasons, Gore is already 19th in Southern Mississippi history with 1,687 rushing yards with nine touchdowns and has added 29 receptions for 252 yards and another two TDs. Gore Jr. ran for a career-high 178 yards and scored twice in the season opener last week.
Parrish was far more in line with Chaney and Knighton than Gore was. The former Columbus star was 167th overall, 15th RB and 23rd in Florida in 2020. Signing the top RB in Dade and Broward in the same class was a coup for the Miami football staff. Any coaching staff faces a difficult challenge signing legacy players.
Next. Miami legacy Frank Gore Jr. returns home Saturday. dark
Frequently legacy players are not as good as their parents. Gore Jr. is a player who has developed in college and succeeded far beyond his ranking. More often players do not live up to their ranking. Fans frequently cry nepotism when a legacy coach or player joins a team. Miami made the right decision at RB in the class of 2020.