Miami Football: Early Look at Favorites to Replace Departing Hurricanes

The 2015 edition of the Miami Hurricanes football team must replace 12 starters from the recent year, equally split with six on both offense and defense.

Most candidates spent the 2014 season as second-stringers, though, a handful missed time due to various reasons or stepped in for unavailable players.

Starters are classified as someone who opened the most games at a respective possession, even if that number is less than seven—under 50 percent of Miami's 13 contests. Ties lean in favor of Hurricanes who would have finished the year had injury not limited them.

Additionally, only one member of the 2015 recruiting class is mentioned because he has officially signed. Any prospect not enrolled at Miami is not included at this time.

Offense

Returning Starters: Brad Kaaya, QB; Malcolm Lewis, WR; Stacy Coley, WR; Danny Isidora, RG; Taylor Gadbois, RT

Vacated Positions: Duke Johnson, RB; Phillip Dorsett, WR; Clive Walford, TE; Ereck Flowers, LT; Shane McDermott, C; Jon Feliciano, LG

USA TODAY Sports

The Hurricanes are losing a variety of offensive starters, but the most significant is Duke Johnson. His production was unmatched on the team, yet the show must go on without the record-setting back.

Joseph Yearby easily has the highest potential of any returning runner, and a 500-yard freshman campaign confirmed his highly touted abilities. Gus Edwards will certainly be a factor throughout the 2015 season, but Yearby's acceleration and one-cut talents make him the clear No. 1 choice.

"Starting wide receiver" is a fickle term at Miami considering it's largely dependent on the formation of the first play, which offensive coordinator James Coley consistently varies. Nevertheless, Phillip Dorsett is headed to the NFL, and someone needs to take the speedster's position.

Rashawn Scott was unavailable because of an "exotic injury," per Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald, while Braxton Berrios and Herb Waters started five and three games, respectively.

After tallying 512 yards as a sophomore in 2012, Scott has only appeared in four games. However, the senior is Miami's best possession target on the outside, something Brad Kaaya didn't truly have last year. If Scott can stay healthy, he's a favorite to start alongside Malcolm Lewis and Stacy Coley.

Granted, it wouldn't be a surprise for Scott, Coley and Berrios to be the top three receivers, with the latter overtaking a seven-game starter in Lewis. After all, Berrios had a clear connection with Kaaya, perhaps the best on the team.

While Standish Dobard is practically a shoo-in at tight end for Clive Walford, the Hurricanes need the 6'4", 255-pound Dobard to improve his routes out of a three-point stance. He snared seven passes for 147 yards last season.

The offensive line isn't in dire straits, but losing nearly 100 combined starts is not insignificant. Taylor Gadbois and Trevor Darling both opened five games at right tackle, and Danny Isidora was stationed at right guard for all 13.

On the left, however, it gets interesting. Kc McDermott missed the final eight games after sustaining a knee injury. A 4-star recruit in 2014, McDermott was pegged with taking over for Flowers, though, that's happening one year sooner than hoped.

While both Alex Gall and Nick Linder are leading candidates to step in for Shane McDermott and Jon Feliciano, the position is in question. Gall was actually recruited as a guard and Linder as a center, but it appears those roles will be switched.

Defense

Returning Starters: Calvin Heurtelou, DT; Tyriq McCord, DE; Raphael Kirby, OLB; Artie Burns, CB; Deon Bush, S

Vacated Positions: Anthony Chickillo, DE; Olsen Pierre, DT; Thurston Armbrister, OLB; Denzel Perryman, MLB; Ladarius Gunter, CB; Nantambu-Akil Fentress, S

Chad Thomas and Al-Quadin Muhammad will battle for Chickillo's position, but AQM is the better fit, so Thomas can stick to rushing off the edge and share time with McCord. Granted, Muhammad was not with the team in 2014, so Thomas certainly could take that spot.

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

At defensive tackle, Ufomba Kamalu is the player to watch, especially since he was statistically better than Pierre anyway. Courtel Jenkins drifted into the background after a solid opening to his freshman campaign, and Michael Wyche was mostly ineffective in limited action.

Linebacker might be a problem. Denzel Perryman's production cannot be replaced with the snap of a finger, but Raphael Kirby will tackle that challenge. Despite starting at outside 'backer in 2014, Kirby should shift back inside since that's where he'd played before dismissals forced Al Golden's hand.

Consequently, both outside linebacker positions are open. Jermaine Grace is a surefire candidate to take one; in fact, he can safely be considered a lock. Complementing Grace will likely be Darrion Owens, who received a majority of any remaining snaps in a remarkably thin corps last year.

Tracy Howard will return for his senior campaign, but the former 5-star must hold off Corn Elder. Keep an eye on Jaquan Johnson, a Class of 2015 early enrollee who may begin his Miami career at cornerback due to a solid safety corps.

Speaking of the safeties, Rayshawn Jenkins is primed to regain his starting position after sitting out 2014 due to a back injury. Lining up next to Deon Bush once again, Jenkins will give the Hurricanes a stout final line of defense.

Stats courtesy of CFBstats.com. Recruiting information via 247Sports unless otherwise noted.

Follow Bleacher Report college football writer David Kenyon on Twitter: @Kenyon19_BR.