Miami Football Recruiting: Top Six Positional Needs for the 2011 Hurricanes

The Al Golden Era has begun at the University of Miami, and the recruiting season does not slow down because of a coaching change.  Golden has now filled out his entire staff, and hit the road recruiting players to bring Miami back to the level that fans are accustomed too.  As with any coaching change, there are going to be some extra players leaving and recruits turned away as the new coach builds the team to his liking.

With the new strategy in hand, Al Golden has managed to sign several players over the past six weeks and have several more on the fence about signing with the Hurricanes on National Signing Day.  Here are the positions of need for the Miami Hurricanes and how this class will help fill those needs.

Quarterbacks

The Miami Hurricanes Quarterback play has been one of the weaknesses of this team over the last two years.  In games against average opponents they have played decent football, but the games against the tougher opponents on the Hurricanes schedule their quarterbacks have not played very well.  The Miami Hurricanes new offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch has stated that the slate is wiped clean for Jacory Harris, and that he and Stephen Morris will compete for the starting quarterback spot.  Stephen Morris showed signs of being the quarterback of the future, and played big in a lot of games for the Hurricanes.

The truth is Morris and Harris are remnants from the old regime, and realistically Morris has the best chance to make this team a winner.  Hurricane fans have seen enough of Jacory Harris to make the conclusion that he is not the guy to put Miami back on top. 

This recruiting class Miami currently has no quarterbacks committed, but are fiercely going after Kevin Sousa and Jacoby Brissett at the last minute to see if they can land a commitment.  On the second tier they have Marcus McDade and Stephen Weatherford waiting for that phone call that the Hurricanes will offer them scholarships.  If Miami is can land Brissett or Sousa then the Hurricanes will be deep at the quarterback position for the next three or four years.

Departing Players

None

2011 Recruiting Targets

Kevin Sousa

Jacoby Brissett

Marcus McDade

Stephen Weatherford

Offensive Line

The Offensive line for the Miami Hurricanes started off shaky last season, but the unit started to come together as the season moved along.  They still suffered from too many mental mistakes in big games, as the Hurricanes were the most penalized team in the ACC.  Most of these penalties came from false start or holding which seemed to kill drives all season. 

Orlando Franklin and Joel Figueroa were two of the biggest offenders when it came to racking up penalties on the offensive line, and Figueroa was eventually replaced by freshman star Seantrel Henderson.  Those were the only two seniors on the roster at offensive line which showed the Hurricanes had a bit of an issue with leadership.

You can never have too much depth on the offensive line, and the Hurricanes already have 14 offensive linemen on the roster even with Franklin and Figueroa leaving.  This class will be light on offensive lineman, but if they can land another top level commitment then they will have enough depth and versatility to be one of the best offensive lines in the country.

Departing Players

Orlando Franklin

Joel Figueroa

2011 Targets

Taylor Gadbois (Committed 1/07/2011)

Antonio Richardson

Cyrus Kouandjio

Wide Receiver

Coming into the season the wide receiving corps was thought to be the strength of this team, but over 60 dropped passes indicated that it was not.  The only consistent player the entire season was Leonard Hankerson, who is going to be moving on to the NFL.  Travis Benjamin, Laron Byrd, Aldarius Johnson, and Tommy Streeter all had relatively subpar seasons, and none look like they are going to be the dominant force that Hankerson was.

The wide receiving corps need an upgrade because they will need to get separation from defensive backs in order to reduce the amount of interceptions thrown by Morris or Harris.  Al Golden and staff have picked up where Randy Shannon left off by going after top receiving talent.  The receivers in this class will upgrade the quality of that position especially if the Hurricanes can get Patrick Onwuasor and Devin Lucien to commit.  If you add that to the commitments of Phillip Dorsett and Rashawn Scott, and the returning receivers will have competition this year.

Departing Players

Leonard Hankerson

Targets

Devin Lucien

Phillip Dorsett (Committed 6/19/1010)

Rashawn Scott (Committed 1/25/2011)

Patrick Onwuasor

Shane Wynn

Defensive End

Allen Bailey is leaving the University of Miami for the NFL and that will be a big blow to this Hurricanes football team.  Even with Bailey here the Hurricanes have lacked a consistent pass rush for the last few years and that needs to be resolved because pressure on the quarterback will take this defense to the next level. 

Anthony Chickillo is the prized recruit of this class, and if you watched the Under Armor All-star game you saw him getting constant pressure on the quarterback and making plays.  Chickillo even had a better game than the No. 1 recruit in the nation Jadeveon Clowney, who was playing across from him and if Ricardo Williams can put some size on him he can be an effective speed rusher for Miami.  Olivier Vernon, Adewale Ojomo, and David Perry will be pushed for time at defensive end by Chickillo.

Departing Players

Allen Bailey

Targets

Anthony Chickillo (Committed 09/09/2010)

Ricardo Williams (Committed 1/09/2011)

Jadeveon Clowney

Bryant Dubose

Special Teams

The Hurricanes need to replace one of the best kickers in their history in Matt Bosher, they have Jake Wieclaw on the roster, but need other options in case Wieclaw is not good at certain aspects of the special teams game.  They Hurricanes have already signed two kickers in this class, so that need should be filled.  The Hurricanes also needed to find someone to return punts and kicks with Travis Benjamin and Lamar Miller and this class is going to address that need by the signing of Roscoe Parrish clone Kevin Grooms.

Departing Players

Matt Bosher (K & P)

Brandon Harris (KR)

Targets

Dalton Botts (Committed 12/29/2010)

Matt Goudis (Committed 01/16/2011)

Kevin Grooms (Committed)

Linebackers

One of the biggest weaknesses on this Hurricanes football team has been the linebacker play.  They shuffled linebackers around trying to find a good fit to play in the middle, and they settled on Colin McCarthy by moving him from his Outside Linebacker spot.  Sean Spence and McCarthy were the two constants at the linebacker position, but gave up big runs up the middle on several occasions this season. 

The University of Miami has always been known for it’s strong linebacker player, and is looking to return to that with the signings in this class.  Gionni Paul, Antonio Kinard, and Denzel Perryman all look like solid prospects and the type of players that can really solidify this linebacking corps for years to come.  If the Hurricanes are able to land Curtis Grant and/or Tony Steward they would be getting some of the top recruits in the nation, but they are unlikely to sign with Miami.  The current commitments we already have are enough, if any more sign this season they will just be a bonus.

Departing Players

Kylan Robinson

Colin McCarthy

Targets

Gionni Paul (Committed 1/28/2011)

Antonio Kinard (Committed 1/17/2011)

Denzel Perryman (Committed 1/21/2011)

Curtis Grant

Tony Steward

Stephone Anthony

Curt Maggitt