CORAL GABLES - Elijah Arroyo is this season's top tight end for the Miami Hurricanes.
In three games, the 6-foot-4, 245-pound junior has recorded seven receptions for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Last season, the entire tight end room combined for 154 yards and two touchdowns on 18 receptions. Arroyo led all Miami tight ends with two receptions for 53 yards and one touchdown in last weekend’s 62-0 win over Ball State.
Both of Arroyo’s catches from senior quarterback Cam Ward came on a drive that resulted in the Canes taking a 24-0 lead over the Cardinals at the 1:53 mark of the second quarter.
The two-play, 53-yard drive began with a 32-yard catch from Ward that got the Canes to the Cardinals 21-yard line. After a timeout at the two-minute warning, the next play was a 21-yard catch to the end zone.
Arroyo registered a season-best 26.5 yards after catch average. The 32-yard reception from Ward was his longest one to date. And for the season thus far, Arroyo is averaging 22.7 yards per catch - the best mark of his four-year career with the Canes. His collegiate career yards per catch average is 17.9 yards.
It is safe to say that this season is Arroyo’s best yet, and it could not have come at a better time for himself and the Canes. On Tuesday, Arroyo spoke with media members and addressed how his season has been going to date.
“I’m not really worried about any stats or anything that’s going on, any tight end rankings, none of that,” Arroyo said. “I’m just here to win games.”
Arroyo moved on from his accomplishments and focused on how the tight end room is now doing. It started with the play of freshman tight end Elija Lofton, who had two receptions for 51 yards and one touchdown against Ball State.
Arroyo on Lofton’s first collegiate touchdown catch: “He’s doing great,” Arroyo said. “I think he handled it well. Me and Cam McCormick, when he scored, we ran down the field. We almost got a flag. Thankfully we didn’t. We’re all happy for him, and he deserves it. He’s earned it, and I think there’s a lot more to come.”
Canes head coach Mario Cristobal stated on Monday that the tight end room is the most humorous group on the team. Arroyo added to this sentiment, saying that everyone brings their own flair to the tight end unit.
“Everybody is pretty funny in their own way,” Arroyo said. “But I’ll give it to him, Elijah Lofton. He’s pretty goofy. He’s funny.”
Arroyo also spoke to the vast array of receiving weapons that Ward has at his disposal.
“It’s great,” Arroyo said. “We have four to five receivers, great running backs, multiple tight ends. Everybody can go for 100 yards any day. With him being able to spread that out, I feel like there’s no defense that can cover everybody.”
Arroyo was happy to speak on the play of sophomore Riley Williams, who has one reception for 24 yards against Ball State. The 6-foot-6, 240-pound tight has attempted a hurdle on his 24-yard reception in last weekend’s game and on his 27-yard reception in the Canes home opener against Florida A&M (56-9 win on Sept. 7).
“With the hurdling attempts, I would give him a three out of ten,” said Arroyo, who graded the efforts made by Williams. “I’m not gonna lie to you. But apart from that, I think he’s doing well. He’s been doing a great adjusting to the offense and playing his role. When he gets in the game, he takes advantage, as you can see. It’s really no drop off when he’s in the game.”
Arroyo gave his analysis of the entire Canes offense after three games played.
“Everybody is improving,” Arroyo said. “Everybody is striving to get better. Our practices are intense. I feel like with every position group, we’re all trying to get better because we’re trying to go and win on Saturday.”
Arroyo provided his brief analysis of Miami’s next opponent, USF (2-1), on the road (Saturday, Sept. 21; 7 p.m. kickoff on ESPN).
“They’re a great team,” Arroyo said. “As a fan of the game, I can say that I appreciate their physicality on film. That makes me real excited to play them on Saturday.”
SIDE NOTES ON MIAMI’S TIGHT END ROOM
In three games played, here are the statistics for the top four Canes tight ends - in order:
•Arroyo: 7 catches, 159 yards, 2 touchdowns - all team highs at tight end
•Lofton: 6 catches, 92 yards, 1 TD, 15.3 yards per catch
•Williams; 2 catches, 51 yards, 25.5 yards per catch (team-high in YPC)
•McCormick: 2 catches, 18 yards, 1 touchdown, 9.0 yards per catch
The entire tight end room has produced the following after three games:
•17 receptions, 320 yards, 4 touchdowns
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