Pro Football Focus ranks Rueben Bain top 10 returning edge rusher

After earning the 2023 ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year, Rueben Bain is sixth in the Pro Football Focus "College Football: Top 10 returning edge defenders for the 2024 season." After a breakout freshman season, Bain is on a trajectory to compete to be an All-American as a sophomore.

Bain leads a deep Miami group of edge rushers. The return of Nyjalik Kelly and Akheem Mesidor from injury and an elite group of freshmen should prevent opponents from being able to double-team Bain. Bain also can move inside on passing downs. Bain significantly outperformed his four-star recruiting ranking.

At 6'3 and 275 pounds, the criticism of Bain was that he was undersized. As a true freshman, Bain has proven his ability to be a dominant force on the defensive line. Bain needs to be slightly more consistent in 2024 to truly become dominant. Bain had 44 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and one one-pass defense in 2023.

Bain had a historic freshman season by PFF standards. Bain's PFF grade as a freshman is comparable to some of the recent elite defensive linemen in their college debut season. After playing sparingly in the first three games behind Kelly and Mesidor in 2023, Bain should produce bigger numbers in 2024.

"6. RUEBEN BAIN JR., MIAMI (FL) HURRICANES
Bain is the only rising sophomore on this list, thanks to his eye-opening true freshman campaign. The former top-60 recruit posted an 89.3 pass-rush grade in 2023. That’s the second-best mark by a Power Five true freshman since PFF began charting college football in 2014. Three of the other players in the top five are currently among the best players in the NFL at their respective positions, and the other is currently one of the best linebackers in college football."

- Max Chadwick, Pro Football Focus

Bain needs to continue to produce to improve his 2026 NFL Draft status. The NFL Mock Draft Database projects Bain as the 75th prospect in 2026. That would be a third-round pick. After earning Freshman All-American in 2023 has a chance to improve as a draft prospect in the next two seasons.

Bain is unquestionably the best pass rusher in the sophomore class. In the 2023 class, Bain was ranked as the 63rd prospect, 11th edge rusher and 15th player in Florida by the 247Sports composite rankings. The primary reason Bain wasn't higher was the perception he was undersized.

Bain should challenge to be among the best pass rushers in the history of the Miami football program. Bain would finish seventh in sacks in Miami history if he continued at the same pace. Danny Stubbs holds the Miami career record for sacks with 39.5 from 1984 through 1987.