After injury setbacks, Jordan Lyle sparks excitement with a highlight-reel play, signaling a potential resurgence for the Miami Hurricanes' formidable running back corps.
After 15 spring practices, the Miami Hurricanes held an exhibition game and the event was an opportunity for others to shine, including Jordan Lyle. The junior running back is coming off a limited season due to injuries: rushing 35 times for 108 yards, scoring a lone touchdown against the Stanford Cardinal, appearing in six games, including a start in the home opener against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
In the spring game, Lyle had opportunities to be a playmaker, including a viral clip of him crashing two defenders into each other.
The run game played a major factor in the Hurricanes’ success last season, including in reaching the National Championship game. Homegrown star Mark Fletcher Jr. led the charge by rushing 75 times for a College Football Playoff record-breaking 507 yards in four games. Meanwhile, Lyle didn’t record a snap.
The Hurricanes retained the running back core from last year, which raises the level of difficulty for the homegrown talent to climb the depth chart.
Ahead of next season, Fletcher Jr. and redshirt-junior CharMar Brown are likely the team’s top two running backs. Girard Pringle Jr. showed flashes of his capabilities, especially in the final four games before the College Football Playoffs: rushing 48 times for 302 yards, scoring two total touchdowns.
The program hired a new running backs coach in Favaian Upshaw after Matt Merritt departed, accepting a job with the Arizona Cardinals. Given all the talent within the position, he emphasized the message that any game could be an opportunity for anyone to shine.
“The first thing I told those guys was, ‘Look around the room, there’s a lot of good players in this room,’” Upshaw said. “The thing that I learned in the NFL is that you never know when your time is going to come. I told them, ‘Game one might not be the Mark Fletcher game.’ I don’t know whose game it’s going to be, but you have to be ready when your number is called. At some point in time, somebody’s going to have a game where they go off and somebody’s not going to have a good day. That’s football and that’s going to happen.”
Lyle showed flashes as a freshman: rushing 54 times for 400 yards, scoring four touchdowns in 12 games, no starts. After a major setback, he will have an opportunity to pick up the leftover pieces.
The Hurricanes' run game could rise in the rankings among Football Bowl Subdivision programs as Lyle enters fall camp healthy and likely eager to make a strong return.
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