Miami football OL ranked top 10 nationally by recruiting outlet

Jesse Simonton of On3 has the Miami football team third in his "2024 Offensive Line Unit Rankings:..Top 10 rooms this fall" Miami returns starting right guard Anez Cooper and tackles Jalen Rivers and Francis Mauigoa and added former Indiana center Zach Carpenter.

Left guard is the only open position. Redshirt sophomore Matt McCoy and redshirt freshman Samson Okunlola were the primary players competing to be the starting left guard during spring practice. Miami returns a lot of experience on the OL with Cooper, Mauigoa and Rivers, plus the addition of Carpenter.

Mario Cristobal and OL coach Alex Mirabal have made the line of scrimmage a point of emphasis in recruiting for Miami. Mauigoa lived up to his five-star status as a freshman. Rivers has started at least three games in each of the past four seasons. Cooper is entering his third season as a starter.

Carpenter played in 27 games with 25 starts at Indiana. Carpenter has 20 starts at center and five at right guard for the Hoosiers. The Big 10 named Carpenter honorable mention all conference in 2023. Carpenter will replace 2023 starting center Matt Lee. Miami also has to replace starting LG Javion Cohen.

"8. Miami
Mario Cristobal has totally overhauled Miami’s offensive line the last two seasons, and the Hurricanes could have the best unit in the ACC this fall. They bring back three starters, headlined by former top recruit Francis Mauigoa, who was a Freshman All-American last year. Jalen Rivers is a quality left tackle, and although they lost Matthew Lee to the NFL Draft, Indiana transfer Zach Carpenter is set to fill in the void. All four players have at least 13 career starts.

The Canes have solid available options behind their first-five, too, with former 5-star Samson Okunlola, Matthew McCoy and JUCO signee Markel Bell. Overall, it’s a big, physical group that should create lots of space for Cam Ward and Damien Martinez to do work. "

- Jesse Simonton On3

Bell is a massive 6'9 and 340 pounds. There has been some speculation that Bell could start at tackle. That would move Mauigoa inside. Mirabal started during spring practice Rivers is staying at LT. Rivers has experience starting at guard. If Miami stays healthy, their OL has a chance to be dominant in 2024.

Finding the right LG to match the chemistry built with the three returning starters and Carpenter will be critical. Mirabal is regarded as one of the best OL coaches nationally. Expect the MIami OL to live up to its projections this season. Miami has the potential to be elite offensively in 2024.