Manny Diaz’s first National Signing Day as head coach at Miami was a bit of a mixed bag. He added an instant impact in grad transfer Trevon Hill from Virginia Tech. Diaz used the new transfer portal to great effect as Miami Football added seven transfers during the offseason.
Players like Bubba Bolden and KJ Osborn are instant impact players for the Hurricanes that in areas of concern. The graduations of Jaquan Johnson and Sheldrick Redwine left an opening in the secondary, while the wide receiver group was young and did not have a lot of playmakers last season. Jeff Thomas was one of those playmakers and he returns to Miami after originally deciding to transfer to Illinois.
Miami’s signing day got off to an early start when Aussie punter Louis Hedley signed his letter of intent Tuesday night. The tattooed punter’s signing went viral as people could not believe that Hedley was actually a punter. Hedley is a big signing for Diaz as punter has been an issue for the Hurricanes over the past two seasons.
Miami flipped four-star cornerback Christian Williams from Alabama, but was unable to convince Khris Bogle to switch. The Cardinal Gibbons defensive end switched from Alabama to Florida, but the Hurricanes could have used him. The Hurricanes also missed out on Mark-Anthony Richards, who committed to Auburn. The brother of Ahmmon Richards is an explosive playmaker, which is something that the Hurricanes desperately need on offense.
Diaz missed on multiple key targets in the south Florida region, but he did greatly improve the roster with transfers and recruits. Williams was one of the best prospects from the state of Alabama and convincing him to come to Miami over the Crimson Tide is huge for Diaz. Former Hurricane Michael Jackson is from Birmingham, Alabama, so Diaz has had success in developing corners from Alabama.
Missing on Bogle and Richards is huge as both players would immediately impact the Hurricanes in their freshman seasons. The duo are highly rated prospects from south Florida who would rather play football in the SEC than for the local Hurricanes. Diaz has to be able to keep the top prospects in the region to bring Miami back to the national spotlight.
His first signing day as head coach was decent, but it definitely could have been better. Flipping Williams from Alabama is a good start, but missing on both Bogle and Richards definitely hurts. Diaz has to start convincing the local talent to stay home or else Miami will continue its struggle in mediocrity.
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