Miami has no shortage of names drawing buzz heading into 2026, but ESPN is betting on a different kind of headline-maker for the Hurricanes: Armondo Blount.
With Malachi Toney, Darian Mensah, Ahmad Moten and Damon Wilson II already grabbing plenty of national attention, the obvious stars are in place. ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, though, went looking for a sleeper who could force his way into the conversation, and Blount landed on that list as a breakout candidate this season.
That makes sense. Blount enters his third year at Miami after working in a rotational role during the Hurricanes’ run to the national championship game last season. The 6-foot-4, 276-pound defensive end came to Coral Gables as a blue-chip recruit in the 2024 class, and 2026 looks like the kind of season where all of that promise can finally start turning into production.
His 2025 line - 17 tackles and 2.5 sacks - only tells part of the story. Blount was buried behind a veteran front that featured NFL first-round picks Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor, so the path to consistent snaps was never easy. Still, he spent that season learning from the top of the depth chart and sharpening his game in practice under defensive line coach Jason Taylor.
Now the lane is wider.
Miami brought in Missouri transfer Damon Wilson II, and Marquise Lightfoot joins Blount back at defensive end, so the Hurricanes will have to sort through reps. But Blount is positioned to earn his share, and the expectation is that his role grows significantly in 2026.
Mario Cristobal clearly sees the upside. He doesn’t usually want too much early-season praise floating around - the “rat poison” he likes to avoid - but he made an exception when talking about Blount.
“Armondo Blount is a guy I really pay close attention to,” Cristobal told ESPN.
“That guy has a great skill set, and he is big, strong, fast, and he is relentless. Like, that motor is insane.
I know everyone talks about Damon Wilson, and they should. Can [the ends] play as good as Mesidor and Bain?
Let’s go find out if they can.”
That’s the hook with Blount. Miami doesn’t need him to walk in and replace Bain’s production all by himself. It needs another edge threat, another defender who can make quarterbacks uncomfortable and live in the backfield.
If Blount turns the flashes from last season into steady disruption, ESPN won’t be the only one putting him on the radar for 2026.
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