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Hurricanes position preview: Miami must rebuild offensive line to have succesful 2026
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- Hurricanes position preview: Miami must rebuild offensive line to have succesful 2026
Spring football is in the rearview mirror, and the Hurricanes' season opener against Stanford is still nearly three months away, but Miami 's roster is set for the upcoming season.
The Hurricanes are coming off their best season in decades, going 10-2 in the regular season before winning three College Football Playoff games and reaching their first national championship game since the 2002 season.
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Expectations are high for the 2026 season, and we will take a look at each of Miami's position groups in the lead-up to the campaign.
Last week, we previewed the Hurricanes' pass-catchers: first, the wide receivers and then the tight ends. This week, we start off with arguably UM's most important position group: the offensive line.
Who left
The Hurricanes lost most of their offensive line from last season's dominant unit. You will be able to watch most of them in the NFL next year.
Francis Mauigoa was the stalwart on UM's offensive line last year. The star right tackle came to Miami before the 2023 season as a five-star prospect, and he lived up to the hype. Mauigoa started 42 games across three years, becoming one of the nation's top offensive linemen.
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Mauigoa had an 87 pass-blocking grade and a 77.1 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus last season, allowing two sacks and only 15 total pressures across 16 games last year. He was picked as a first-team All-ACC lineman and was selected as a consensus All-American. The New York Giants picked Mauigoa with the 10th pick in the draft.
Mauigoa was the top UM lineman taken in the draft, and he would not be the last.
Markel Bell, the Hurricanes' left tackle, also left for the NFL after a standout season at UM. Bell spent two years at Miami after transferring from a Mississippi junior college. Bell had a 66 run-blocking grade and an 83.5 pass-blocking grade. Bell did not allow a sack all season.
Bell, a third-team All-ACC pick, went to the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round.
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Anez Cooper was third UM offensive lineman taken in the draft, drastically thinning out the unit from a year ago. Cooper arrived at Miami prior to the 2022 season as an unheralded, three-star recruit. Cooper quickly became a key part of the Hurricanes' offensive line, taking over as the starting right guard as a freshman and holding down that spot for the next three seasons.
Cooper was a steady presence on the line, notching a 67.4 run-blocking grade and a 78.9 pass-blocking grade. He was a second-team All-ACC pick. The New York Jets took Cooper in the sixth round.
Miami also lost James Brockermeyer, who spent only one year with the Hurricanes after transferring from TCU. Brockermeyer took over as Miami's center and performed admirably. The veteran lineman had a 68.8 run-blocking grade and an 86.4 pass-blocking grade, and he did not allow a sack last season.
Brockermeyer, a third-team All-ACC pick, signed with the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent.
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Miami also lost three offensive linemen to the portal: Tommy Kinsler, Nino Francavilla and Deryc Plazz. Kinsler played the most of the four, getting on the field for 56 snaps last season. Plazz played 20 snaps, and Francavilla did not play.
Kinsler transferred to Ole Miss, Plazz transferred to Auburn and Francavilla transferred to Buffalo.
Who returned
The Hurricanes have only a few experienced offensive linemen returning, meaning there will be a lot of changes this year.
"There's a lot of, I would say, experimenting," Miami coach Mario Cristobal said at the start of spring practice. "A lot of trial and error (to) see what's our best combination."
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Matthew McCoy is the sole starter back this season. The 6-foot-6, 325-pound redshirt senior was the Hurricanes' starting left guard last year, splitting time with Samson Okunlola. McCoy played the majority of snaps (605) and earned a 70 run-blocking grade.
McCoy prepared during spring football to move from left guard to right tackle this season.
"I'm just trying to focus on playing right tackle and getting better and getting my group better and leading," McCoy said. "This is my last year, so just focused on leading and building my craft, being able to play every position."
Okunlola, who is 6-6 and 330 pounds, will also be a key part of the line. Okunlola did not participate in spring practice due to injury, but he will likely return to be the starting left guard. He had a 68.9 pass-blocking grade and a 72.5 run-blocking grade in 493 snaps.
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The other returning offensive linemen do not have nearly as much experience.
Ryan Rodriguez, a sixth-year redshirt senior, is expected to take over as the center this season. Rodriguez's career has been dogged by injuries, limiting him to 261 career snaps. But the Hurricanes' staff trusts the 6-foot-2, 300-pound veteran to play a big role when healthy.
"I thought last year Ryan Rodriguez could have started at center for any other program in the ACC, not the University of Miami," offensive line coach Alex Mirabal said in March. "And I'll stand by that, because we had a heck of a center here in James Brockermeyer, and we had another heck of a center named Ryan Rodriguez. And to Ryan's credit, he loves the University of Miami, and he didn't transfer. So to me, he's a guy that should be praised for choosing to stay at Miami. He waited his time, and you know what? He kind of did it the old path."
The Hurricanes also have returning young linemen who could play key roles. Sophomores Max Buchanan (6-4, 310 pounds) and SJ Alofaituli (6-2, 290 pounds) played sparingly as freshmen but could take over for Cooper at right guard this year.
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"We felt that Max Buchanan, towards the end last year, was ready to play," Cristobal said. "We felt that if, God forbid, there was an injury, we could plug him right in. And SJ has got extensive work at tight end, so he got live action against real-deal situations."
Miami also brings back redshirt sophomore Juan Minaya and redshirt freshmen Demetrius Campbell and Jaden Wilkerson.
Who arrived
The Hurricanes added eight offensive linemen in the offseason: two via the transfer portal and six in the high school recruiting class.
One new lineman is poised to have an immediate impact: five-star prospect Jackson Cantwell. Cantwell, a Missouri native, was the top offensive lineman and No. 2 recruit in the 2026 class. He is 6-8 and 330 pounds, and he is expected to take over for Bell at left tackle.
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Cantwell was thrown into the mix before officially being on the team, joining the team to practice during the Hurricanes' College Football Playoff run. When spring camp began, he was thrown into the fire as a key part of the line.
"He has responded well (to being challenged in spring camp)," Cristobal said. "And I think he's the type of guy that he's all about getting coached hard and getting pushed."
Freshman Ben Congdon, a four-star prospect, also impressed in spring camp. The 6-foot-8, 305-pound freshman from Ohio could also see the field early.
"I'd say my progress is going pretty smoothly," Congdon said in April. "Just stacking days, pretty much: just working out every day, watching film every day, like studying. But just learning for Mirabal and all the older guys really helps."
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Other freshmen include Canon Pickett, JJ Sparks, Rhys Woodrow and Joel Ervin. Ervin was a four-star prospect, and Pickett, Sparks and Woodrow were three-star prospects.
UM added two offensive-line transfers: Jamal Meriweather and Johnathan Cline. Of the two, Meriweather is more likely to play this season. He is 6-7 and 305 pounds and played 56 snaps for Georgia last year. Cline is 6-4 and 315 pounds, and he transferred from FCS East Tennessee State.
