The No. 3 Hurricanes have taken a beating through their first five games.
Miami has seen several important players miss time due to injury this season, including starting cornerbacks OJ Frederique Jr. and Xavier Lucas.
But there is some good news coming.
The Hurricanes expect to get Lucas back on the field to face Florida State on Saturday, Miami coach Mario Cristobal said. Lucas has been out since UM’s season-opening victory over Stanford. Damari Brown, who played only six snaps against Clemson, is also ready to go, Cristobal said.
“Having those guys back, it’s obviously a blessing,” safety Zechariah Poyser said. “But here at the University of Miami, we’ve got a lot of versatile guys.”
Lucas’ return provides a big boost to Miami’s defense, which has done well even in his and fellow starter Frederique’s absences. The Hurricanes turned to cornerback Ethan O’Connor and safety-turned-outside-cornerback Bryce Fitzgerald while the two missed the last four games.
With Lucas returning and taking over one of the outside positions, the Hurricanes can move Fitzgerald back to safety, where he primarily played last season. Or Miami could also mix and match in the secondary in order to best fit the scenario for each individual situation.
Fitzgerald has performed well in pass coverage since arriving at UM. The sophomore defensive back picked off six passes last season and has an 80.2 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus this season, which is second on the team behind O’Connor. He has allowed nine catches for 75 yards on 16 passes thrown his way.
While Fitzgerald has done well in coverage, nickelback Omar Thornton has struggled. Thornton has a 51.4 coverage grade, allowing 12 catches for 124 yards on 17 targets. He has excelled near the line of scrimmage, earning an 81.4 run-defense grade and a 79.5 pass-rushing grade.
“I think he’s done a really good job,” defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman said. “I think how fast he plays, how physical he plays, how fast he’s picked up this defense — I think some of the areas where you’ve seen maybe a missed tackle, I’m excited to see him clean that up and continue to play with more detail. He had a really good week of practice last week, and I’m excited to see him go out and attack it and keep getting better every single week.”
Freshman JJ Dunnigan has filled in for Fitzgerald at safety, and he has a 70.3 coverage grade. Dunnigan has allowed 10 catches for 157 yards on 12 targets, but he made his first career interception (and returned it for a touchdown) against Clemson.
Miami could choose to play the situation, putting Fitzgerald and Dunnigan on the field in passing situations and playing Fitzgerald and Thornton in running situations.
“(Fitzgerald) can play corner, he can play nickel, he can play safety, he can blitz, he can play man, he can play deep in the post,” Hetherman said. “And I think that position versatility is what we look … for in recruiting. We want guys that can play on offense, that are good with the ball in their hands, guys that can go attack the football, guys that have good position versatility. They can tackle, they can play in space, they can play in the box, they can do a lot of different things. And I think that’s where his game’s continuing to get better. There’s little things that last year we were like, ‘Listen, this is where your game is really good right now. This is what you need to get better at.’ And you know, we’ve made a major emphasis all offseason about that.
“And I think his game’s taken those next steps and it’s hard. You’re a young player and you’re really comfortable at one spot and, all of a sudden, now you get moved to a different position. And I think he’s handled it really well. And I think just that position versatility makes this defense so much better all the way through.”
The numerous injuries have tested the Hurricanes’ depth, with players like Dunnigan, junior Dylan Day and redshirt sophomore Ryan Mack among the beneficiaries. Despite multiple players being hurt, Miami has the No. 1 defense in the naton, allowing just 9.8 points per game.
“I think a lot of guys have stepped up,” Hetherman said. “A lot of guys are doing a really good job, and I think it’s helped create more roles in our defense. A lot more guys that we can see in different situations, playing different parts of the game, situational things, packages. Excited to get guys back. You always want more depth. You always want to have those guys back. So (I am) excited to have them back.”