No. 7 Miami will head into its season opener at Stanford without one of its biggest names, as running back Jordan Lyle has been ruled out.
Lyle was expected by many to miss time after the report of his arrest on charges of reckless driving and fleeing police, and now his status has shifted from speculation to the injury report. Head coach Mario Cristobal said the situation could still be tied to a self-imposed team suspension or to an injury that surfaced after what he described as a fairly healthy camp.
Cristobal said the team has been in decent shape overall, saying, "I think fairly well," Cristobal said about the team's health. "For us, I feel like for all is extremely physical and challenging, or whatnot.
But responsible, right? I don't think it's walking the line.
I think it's a very clear line. You have to get both done, both accomplished.
Feel in a good spot."
On his weekly press conference call, Cristobal gave the same answer when asked about Lyle’s situation.
"Same status, letting everything run their process," Cristobal said.
Miami will now have to lean deeper into its backfield, with Mark Fletcher Jr., CharMar Brown, and Girard Pringle Jr. expected to carry more of the load in Lyle’s absence.
The Hurricanes are listed with four players out for the opener, including defensive back Ja'Boree Antoine and Dylan Day, tight end Luka Gilbert, and Lyle. The larger unavailable group also includes linebacker Dylan Stephenson; wide receivers Carter Shaw and Daylen Sharper; defensive backs Jason Hil Jr, Breylan Thompson, Jack Duckworth, Zaiden McDonald and Aaron Morris; offensive linemen Aidan Kilstrom, Nathan Mejia and Nick Fattig; defensive linemen Jacobi Murray and Brendan Delaney; tight end Reiman Zebert; and kicker London Bironas.
There are also five players listed as questionable: wide receivers Caden High and Nico Brown, linebacker Ernest Cooper, and offensive linemen Simione Pale and Niki Prongos.
Among the players tagged as probable are safety Jay Green, cornerbacks Chris Garland and Jaivon Randall, and wide receiver Jacob Butler.
Probable means likely to play, with greater than a 50% chance. Questionable means uncertain to play, with less than a 50% chance.
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