The Miami Hurricanes football program continued in full pads for the first time on Wednesday during training camp. Christy Cabrera Chirinos of MiamiHurricanes.Com summarized post-practice thoughts from Mario Cristobal and the players. The winners and losers of conference realignment were graded by 247 Sports.
Mario Cristobal, Kamren Kinchens, Matt Lee, Akheem Mesidor and Tyler Van Dyke spoke to the media after practice on Wednesday. Cabrera Chirinos wrote an extensive summary of the comments from the head coach and four leaders. Cristobal gave a glimpse of what to expect in the next few days.
The subjects that Cristobal discussed were a summary of the practice on Wednesday, freshman wide receiver Nathaniel Joseph, the scrimmage on Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium, competition in training camp, cornerback play and the development of freshmen Rueben Bain and Mark Fletcher.
Lee discussed the physicality during the first day in pads, the opportunity of scrimmaging at Hard Rock Stadium, competing against defensive tackle Leonard Taylor and the play of offensive lineman Anez Cooper. Lee is expected to be one of the leaders on the Miami Hurricanes offense during the 2023 season.
Cabrera Chirinos noted the main topics for Mesidor included Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium, the progress of the defensive line and the energy in practice on Wednesday. Mesidor is returning for his second season with Miami after tying for the team lead with 10.5 tackles for loss and leading the Hurricanes with seven sacks in 2022.
Van Dyke discussed Joseph, chemistry building with the WRs and how they’ve performed in training camp, offensive progress, what he wants the offense to accomplish in the scrimmage and his offseason preparation. This will be the first chance for Van Dyke to work with the full team in a scrimmage in the Shannon Dawson offense.
Kinchens discussed how the defense has built chemistry, on being a defensive leader and what he wants from the defense in the scrimmage. Kinchens has previously discussed how the Miami defense has adjusted under new coordinator Lance Guidry. Miami has a fresh start throughout the team in 2023.
Brad Crawford of 247 Sports called the ACC a winner (for now) following the defections of the five Pac-12 schools to the Big 10 and Big XII last week. Crawford discussed the potential for Florida State to leave the ACC and the possibility of expansion being discussed with California, SMU and Stanford.