Miami Hurricanes: Hoops drops in polls, FB adds transfer and 2 new HoFers

It was a mixed day of Miami Hurricanes news on Monday. The basketball team dropped to 16th in the AP Top 25 and 15th in the USA Today Coaches Poll. The football team received a commitment from Purdue transfer defensive tackle Branson Deen. Several Miami signees were praised after the All-American Game.

Deen had 73 tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, one pass defended and one forced fumble in four seasons with Purdue. The best season for Deen was as a junior in 2021 with 26 tackles, 9.5 TFLs and three sacks. Gaby Urrutia of Inside the U reported that Pro Football Focus credited Deen with 34 pressures in 2022.

That was the sixth-best in the country among Power Five DTs and 14th overall. Deen adds to the depth for Miami at DT with Thomas Gore from Georgia State who announced his intention to transfer to Miami last month. Deen was a three-year starter who had four tackles and a half TFL in the Big 10 title game versus Michigan.

Miami fell in the AP Top 25 receiving 604 points, nine behind 15th-ranked Arkansas. The Hurricanes received 329 points in the coaches poll which is three behind 13th-ranked Iowa State. Iowa State moved up 11 spots in the polls. The 12th ranking Miami held in both polls last week was the highest for the Hurricanes since 2017.

Other good news for the Miami Hurricanes football program on Monday was the announcement that former Miami All-American offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie and Hurricanes’ quarterback and head coach Mark Richt were accepted for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.

McKinnie was a unanimous All-American in 2001 and won the Outland Trophy as the best interior lineman in college football that season. Richt was a QB at Miami from 1978 through 1982 and the Hurricanes’ head coach from 2016 through 2018. Richt had a career record of 171–64 overall and was 26-13 in three years at Miami.

Richt led Miami to a 9-4 2016 season that included a 31-14 Russell Athletic Bowl win over West Virginia. The win over the Mountaineers is the only bowl victory for Miami since 2006. Miami finished 10-3 in 2017 which included the Hurricanes’ only ACC Coastal Division title and sole appearance in the ACC Championship Game.

Steve Wiltfong the Director of Football Recruiting for 247 Sports observed after the All-American Game that “Miami’s Signees Will Make An Immediate Impact in Coral Gables.” of the three who played in the game. Running back Mark Fletcher, offensive lineman Samson Okunlola and wide receiver Nathaniel Joseph were in San Antonio.

Fletcher showcased he is more than his reputation as a tough inside runner with an 81-yard touchdown reception where he beat the linebacker over the middle. Joseph had a nice nine-yard gain to begin the All-American game and later scored a TD out of the Wildcat. Okunlola started for the East at left tackle.

We will have more extended looks at how Deen fits into the Miami football program and the scouting reports from Wiltfong on Fletcher, Joseph and Okunlola later on Tuesday and in the Canes Warning Newsletter on Wednesday. It’s an exciting time to be a Miami Hurricanes fan with the basketball teams and football program.