The Miami Hurricanes football team has to be feeling pretty good ahead of the 2024 season. Perhaps no team improved more than Mario Cristobal's squad to the point where they could make a massive jump in one season. But that's exactly what Miami (FL) football has set themselves up for, through two strong recruiting classes coupled with their impressive use of both the winter and the spring transfer portal.
Miami football offense set to be dynamic for 2024 season
Most of the head-turning from this use of recruiting and the transfer portal has been what has been done to the offense. You can't start talking about the revamped Miami football offense without first talking about their new signal caller in Cam Ward. The former Washington State quarterback completely changes the identity of the Hurricanes, not just as an offense but as a team as a whole.
The quarterback position has long been the subject of ridicule for Miami football, and with Ward, who has now proven himself going back to his days at Incarnate Word and then with the Cougars, he's bound to make an impact that hasn't been seen at the position in years.
Who Ward might often be handing the football off to is Damien Martinez. The former Oregon State running back was one of the best backs in the spring edition of the transfer portal and is now one of many weapons on the new-look Hurricanes offense.
The 2024 Miami football team also has what Pro Football Focus has labeled a top 10 receiving corps. The Canes come in at No. 7 on the list, between Missouri and Colorado. It's a group that will now be led by last year's leader Xavier Restrepo, last year's breakout Jacolby George, and transfer portal addition Sam Brown out of Houston.
That means, on paper at least, that all the skill positions should be well-improved. Yet, the one that has been talked about the least is that of the tight ends, who obviously not only do work in receiving but also protection. Now with complementary skill position players all around, plus a top offensive line and the quarterback to facilitate the ball to everybody, Hurricanes tight end Elijah Arroyo could finally have his breakout season.
Elijah Arroyo will have his breakout season for Miami football in 2024
For a school that used to be labeled as Tight End U thanks to players like Bubba Franks, Jeremy Shockey, Greg Olsen, Jimmy Graham, and others, it has been anything but that for a while at Miami. Last year may have hit an all-time low for Miami tight ends.
Four tight ends hit the field for Miami last year, and between them, they only had 18 catches for 154 yards. That's beyond terrible. Arroyo was supposed to be a big part of Miami's offense going back to 2022 but suffered a knee injury that season, which then kept him out through most of the 2023 season. But all things are new again in 2024, including Arroyo's health.
Miami football coaches have already been high on Arroyo, raving about his offseason work thus far, according to ESPN, which also named the tight end as a breakout star for the Canes in 2024. At 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, Arroyo is the type of big-bodied player who can be a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses, and now that he has what should be a reliable quarterback behind center to throw him the ball, the sky could be the limit for him this upcoming season, as could a revival at the tight end position.
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