The Miami Hurricanes have massively reshaped the roster from a year ago with five primary offensive starters gone (QB Tyler Van Dyke, RB Henry Parrish, WR Colbie Young, OL Javion Cohen and Matt Lee) along with seven on the defensive side (DT Leonard Taylor, DT Branson Deen, DL Jared Harrison-Hunte, S Kam Kinchens, S James Williams, CB Jaden Davis and CB Te’Cory Couch).
50. RB JORDAN LYLE … 49. RB CHRISTOPHER JOHNSON … 48. DE COLE MCCONATHY … 47. S ZAQUAN PATTERSON … 46. TE CAM MCCORMICK … 45. NY CARR … 44. JUSTIN SCOTT … 43. OT Markel Bell … 42. RB AJAY ALLEN … 41. TE RILEY WILLIAMS … 40. OL MATTHEW MCCOY … 39. LB CAM PRUITT … 38. DT JOSHUA HORTON … 37. LB RAUL AGUIRRE … 36. S MARKEITH WILLIAMS … 35. S JADEN HARRIS … 34. QB EMORY WILLIAMS … 33. WR JOJO TRADER … 32. D’YONI HILL
Which brings us to our annual series breaking down the top 50 players on the current roster. As we go along on this list you’ll get an idea of the overall depth of talent on Mario Cristobal’s team this year as he seeks Miami’s second 10-win season in the last two decades.
Today we are at No. 31:
NO. 31 WR RAY RAY JOSEPH
Why He’s No. 31
Joseph visibly bulked up from last year but may have lost a step as a result. Regardless he’s still a speedy playmaker who now will be elevated to second team slot behind Xavier Restrepo with Brashard Smith gone. The consensus four-star signee two years ago out of Miami Edison is a shifty playmaker who is explosive with the ball in space. Last season he played in 10 games and finished with 251 all-purpose yards (six catches totaling 36 yards, 185 kick return yards with a long of 31 yards, 30 punt return yards). Per Pro Football Focus he had a 73.9 percent grade on kick returns and 67.7 percent grade on punt returns. On offense his overall grade was 57.2 with a 56.5 grade as a receiver. We thought Joseph would have a bigger role than he did as a true freshman, but with Restrepo enjoying a breakout year he was mostly relegated to the bench.
What he needs to do to move up this list
Unfortunately for Joseph, his primary spot is in the slot and it’s going to be a tall task for him to get a lot of reps given Xavier Restrepo rarely came out of games last year (his 678 reps were eighth-most on team). But Joseph can have a role as a returner and get some spot reps … probably a lot more than the 69 he had a year ago since he was also behind Brashard Smith. So there will be every chance for Joseph to show he can be an explosive playmaker with the ball in his hands and set himself up for a big 2025 season.
Realistic season objective
Brashard Smith played three times more reps than Joseph a year ago, and now those reps should get gobbled up by Joseph with Smith gone. If he gets around 200-300 reps this year there’s no reason he can’t have at least 200 receiving yards. And he also should be able to have some explosive plays on return given his skillset. Joseph has a very bright future, he just may not be able to really flash it until 2025 when Restrepo is gone.
The post Miami Hurricanes 50-1 Countdown: Ranking the top 50 post-spring players … No. 31 Ray Ray Joseph appeared first on On3 .
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