A few weeks ago, the Miami Hurricanes were looking pretty solid on the running back front. Recruiting was going smoothly—with a few early enrollees expected—and “The U” remained in the mix for a few undecided prospects.
Since then, the wheels have slightly fallen off and must be put back on between now and national signing day.
Miami proved one-dimensional at running back last fall after losing Duke Johnson in early November at Florida State. Dallas Crawford and Gus Edwards were serviceable in relief, but neither rose up as a next-level option for the Hurricanes, who started 7-0 and went 2-4 with Johnson sidelined.
The recruiting trail was expected to provide offseason answers to all of next fall’s questions, but is coming up short.
5-star prospect Dalvin Cook may have been a long shot for Miami, but as of early January, at least the Hurricanes were still in the running. That all changed at the Under Armour All-America Game when the Miami Central prospect decommitted from Florida and went with eventual national champion Florida State.
The Hurricanes took another hit last week when 3-star prospect Brandon Powell spurned Miami at the final hour, instead choosing Florida. Set to be an earlyenrollee, something shifted late in the process and Powell went with the Gators, who were all over him following’s Cook’s decommit.
Months back, the Hurricanes also lost out on 5-star prospect Sony Michel, who was pro-Miami for years but decided against staying home for college and is ready to suit up for Georgia.
Miami will bring in Cook’s high school teammate, Joseph Yearby—a 4-star prospect in his own right—but an early-December injury will keep him out of spring practice despite being one of a few early enrollees.
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