The Miami Hurricanes needed some good news on the injury front today, and Mario Cristobal provided it in his Monday press conference with a positive update on Malachi Toney and Mark Fletcher.
Cristobal said both of the offensive team captains will be a full go this week at practice and are expected to get their normal load of starter snaps in Week 4 against Central Michigan. The Hurricanes are massive favorites over the Chippewas, so neither player might go deep into the game, but they will get in some important work with a road game against Clemson coming up in less than two weeks.
Miami HC Mario Cristobal says it looks “favorable” for both WR Malachi Toney and RB Mark Fletcher Jr. to play Saturday against Central Michigan.
— TrintonBreeze (@TrintonBreeze) September 21, 2026
Malachi Toney & Mark Fletcher should be ready for Week 4
The update on Toney and Fletcher was a nice break from the earlier news that Miami would be without running back CharMar Brown and wide receiver Joshua Moore for the rest of the season. The depth behind both players is still in flux and questions will have to be answered. But Toney is the undisputed WR1 and Fletcher is the clear RB1 on the Hurricanes, so it's a relief that they are fine.
Toney has arguably been the best wide receiver in the country this season and is in the thick of the Heisman race. He was clearly laboring in the second half against Wake Forest, but still finished with 12 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown. He has 28 catches for 444 yards and five touchdowns this season.
Fletcher has gotten off to a slower start, but there were some runs against the Demon Deacons that gave a good indication that he is starting to get warmed up at the right time. He had 16 carries for 85 yards and a touchdown in Week 3 and looked on track to record consecutive 100-yard games before he was pulled from the game.
The health of both players is paramount as the Hurricanes will need some guys to step up to replace their injured teammates. Cristobal said that injuries are part of the sport, and it's why he places an emphasis on developing young talent.
"We've been hit by it a little bit more this year than we have in really all the previous years, and so you really always emphasize with your coaches making sure that you're developing your entire room, right? Because you never know when they're going to get tapped on the shoulder and be called upon," he said.
Let's hope the injury news slows down and the players on the shelf will be back on the field soon. And thankfully, Toney and Fletcher will not be joining them.
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