With Robert Burns' transfer, the Miami Hurricanes were slated to have four scholarship running backs this season: Returning veteran Cam Harris and second-year backs Jaylan Knighton and Don Chaney along with incoming freshman Thaddius Franklin.
Now you can add another back to the mix.
Cody Brown, a four-star last cycle, has decided to become a Cane - he's the second Tennessee transfer heading to UM, joining DE Deandre Johnson.
Brown was signed to Tennessee by then coach Jeremy Pruitt and was released from his letter of intent after the coaching shakeup.
A 2021 recruit, Cane coaches wanted him in that class but the Georgia native wound up in Knoxville. He only wound up with Tennessee only a couple of months before his release, so he'll be a true freshman at Miami. While adding him will for all intents and purposes count against the 2022 class limit, he's essentially a 25th first-year guy in the Class of 2021.
And at 6-0 and 217 pounds he's got a lot of upside as a bruising power back who ran for 5,221 yards in his high school career. His other finalists out of high school were Ohio State, Auburn and Georgia.
Brown is especially intriguing for UM because he brings that power run game the other returning tailbacks don't possess; he should continue to bulk up in a college weight/nutrition system.
CaneSport's take
This is more a move for the future, since we would not expect Brown to make an immediate splash given the returning talent. But perhaps he can find an early role in those third-and-short situations UM struggled to convert this past season. Brown will enroll at UM for the second summer session and will not compete this spring. This is a win for the Canes since Miami actually wanted a second back last class but Franklin was going to open things up if that happened.
