The Missing Piece That Could Save Miami's Secondary Is Eying A Return
Help in the secondary could be coming a lot sooner for the No. 9 Miami as they prepare to take on Wake Forest in the team's final home game of the season.
How to Watch: Wake Forest at No. 11 Miami, Full Week 13 TV Schedule
Cornerback Damari Brown was a promising talent for the Hurricanes as he was positioned to be CB 1 for the season before he came down with an injury in the opening game of the season against Florida.
Without him, the Hurricanes' secondary took a drastic dip in production and now is relying on freshmen (who are performing at a higher level than other tenured players) to cover the production he was providing in those limited snaps against the Gators.
Miami head coach Mario Cristobal has never been the best at keeping people up to date with injuries on his team, but he has highlighted how well Brown has taken the injury and grown in other ways as he has started practicing once again.
"I think it's helped him come out of his shell a little bit. Because Damari--number one, he comes from a great family, but he's very reserved in a good way, just very focused, takes care of his business. And when you go through something like that, you find yourself, you know, you have to be engaged in different ways, and we don't allow guys to isolate during injury time. That's the worst thing you could do for players. Let him kind of drift off and get his own mental space."
Cristobal continued.
"It's never good. So you've seen him just develop, just from a personality standpoint, engagement standpoint. He looks great. I mean, this is a big week for him because the reps will be taken, and the work he'll be doing is as close to, you know, gameplay as it could possibly be. So we're working hard to get him ready," Cristobal said.
He is eyeing a return before the College Football Playoff begins. Some reps against Wake Forest would seem like the ideal spot to try and get him back into the groove of things before the final game of the season against a Syracuse offense that will be poised to ruin the Hurricanes' dream season.
