CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Even with Malachi Toney breaking more Miami Hurricanes records, notice who has been on the field more and more over the past few weeks.
No. 1 Miami has one of the deepest receiver rooms in the country, but others can be overshadowed at times. Cooper Barkate entered Miami as a 1000 yard receiver from Duke, but he also knew that Toney was going to get most of the targets this season.
He is underrated. Before Josh Moore went down with an injury that now has him in a neck brace, he was a serious threat. Daylyn Upshaw had the best game of his career against Florida State, highlighting the depth of the room.
Moreover, two more players have been added to the consistent rotation after working their way in to get more reps on the field.
South Carolina transfer Vandrevius Jacobs and freshman Somourian Wingo. Jacobs has turned into the big play-deep target for Darian Mensah over the past two weeks. Wingo continues to grow, and the team is using his size more and more on the perimeter.
This is what head coach Mario Cristobal has wanted from his group for some time: to step up, even with a Heisman candidate in the same room.
"That they're going to continue to get more snaps, and they've been proving it in practice," Cristobal said. "And I think that's something to always keep in mind. We like to make sure that game day is never an experiment. It's a reflection of what guys have been able to show in practice, and then leading all the way to a walkthrough before we head out to the stadium, right?
"The mind's got to be locked in. They've got to be able to do things at a certain level, and they've been performing at a high level in practice, and they're in a group where other guys are performing at a high level as well.
"So, to keep our guys playing at optimal levels, it would be wise for us to continue to get them more reps without compromising the reps, also, of some some other guys that have been playing at a high level, so we feel like we have multiple starters at that position."
Miami's depth remains an advantage, with Toney getting so many targets. It is also clear that some of them are starting to catch up to him, going in and out of the lineup week after week due to injuries.
Toney is banged up, but that's not stopping his production on the field. Moreover, with more talented players aiding him, he won't have to be used as much until the time comes for Mensah to spam the Heisman-to-Heisman connection.
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