Rebuilding the secondary through the transfer portal was a priority for the 2025 Miami roster. Miami returning cornerback O.J. Frederique and Jacksonville State safety Zechariah Poyser were named to the Football Writers Association of America Freshman All-America Team on Tuesday.
Frederique had 30 tackles, 1.0 tackle for loss, 7.0 pass breakups, one interception and 8.0 passes defended in 2024. Pro Football Focus gave Frederique a 72.8 defensive grade and a 71.8 coverage grade in 2024. Frederique was named honorable mention All-ACC.
Poyser had 75 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, three interceptions, 11 passes defended and two fumble recoveries for Jacksonville State as a redshirt freshman in 2024. Poyser was one of the most sought-after transfers, ranked the No. 2 safety in the portal and No. 83 player overall.
Frederique was one of eight ACC players named to the FWAA Freshman All-America Team. That was second behind the SEC, which had eight freshmen All-Americans. Poyser was one of seven Freshman All-Americans named from a Group of Five program and the only one from Conference USA.
This elite and skilled playmaker is now a Freshman All-American by @TheFWAA 🙌
— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) January 14, 2025
Congratulations, @Ojgotfanzz3!#GoCanes pic.twitter.com/z2MVwuAVZ4
Frederique is the 12th Miami player to be named to the FWAA Freshman All-America team. Defensive lineman Rueben Bain and right tackle Francis Mauigoa were the most recent in 2023. Poyser is the first player from Jacksonville State to earn FWAA Freshman All-America honors after it joined the FBS in 2023.
Hurricanes cornerback OJ Frederique Jr. was named a Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America.
— Jordan McPherson (@J_McPherson1126) January 14, 2025
Safety Zechariah Poyser, who transferred to Miami from Jacksonville State, also made the list.
Full list: https://t.co/gIWwWSlizg
In addition to Poyser, Miami also added transfer CBs Charles Brantley from Michigan State, Emmanuel Karnley from Arizona and Ethan O'Connor from Washington State to improve the secondary in 2025. After an injury kept him to two games in 2024, Damari Brown will return for his third season with Miami in 2025.
The Miami secondary will look vastly different than from 2024. Frederique and rising sophomore safety Zaquan Patterson are the primary players who were a significant part of the 2024 rotation returning in 2025. Expect Miami to continue being active in the transfer portal to add more players in the secondary for 2025.