The Miami Hurricanes may be set up to win the battle inside this season, and the numbers back up the buzz.
According to Pro Football Focus, Miami is the only ACC team with two returning defensive tackles ranked inside the league’s top 10. Ahmad Moten Sr. checks in at No. 3 with a 77.6 grade, while Scott sits right behind him at No. 7 with a 74.1 mark. That gives the Hurricanes a rare kind of edge in the middle of the defense, especially after last year’s spotlight was dominated by edge rushers Akheem Mesidor and All-American Rueben Bain Jr.
Moten Sr. is coming off the best season of his career. In 14 games, all starts, he piled up 31 total tackles, including 20 solo stops and 11 assists, along with nine tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.
After passing on the NFL and coming back to Coral Gables, he now has a chance to boost his stock even more. He has already drawn early first-round projections for the 2027 class.
The Fort Lauderdale native brings more than production. He’s listed at 6-3 and 300 pounds and plays with an explosive first step, plus the speed and agility that make him hard to handle when he gets rolling.
His rise has come with more responsibility, too. Moten Sr. missed spring practices while recovering from injuries suffered in the College Football Playoffs, but he has since rejoined the team for fall camp.
Scott gives Miami another disruptive presence next to him. The Chicago native put together a strong sophomore season, finishing with 26 total tackles, 15 solo and 11 assists, 6.5 tackles for loss, one sack and a forced fumble across 15 games, nine of them starts.
He enters the year as a first-time NFL Draft-eligible player, and his mix of raw talent and explosiveness makes him a tough block for guards and centers. At 6-4 and 303 pounds, he already has the kind of frame teams want on Sundays.
Both players have been developed by defensive tackle coach Damione Lewis, a former 10-year NFL veteran.
Miami will still get production off the edge, but the interior looks like it could be the engine of the front. Moten Sr. and Scott are positioned to take on leadership roles while creating problems for opposing offenses. Behind them, Jarquez Carter and Keona Davis provide depth after arriving through last winter’s transfer window.
In Other News...
Mario Cristobal Put Miami In The Spotlight With His Nick Saban Talk
Mario Cristobal used a recent sit-down with ESPNs Rece Davis to put his old connection with Nick Saban back in the spotlight, leaning into the kind of easy banter that comes from years of crossing paths in the same coaching circles. The Miami coach joked his way through questions about their relationship, while also touching on the trust and competitive edge that shaped their time working together and the way he approaches the job in Coral Gables.
The exchange added another layer to a Miami program that is trying to keep attention on its own climb, not just the personalities around it. Cristobal also discussed his coaching philosophy and the road ahead on the Hurricanes schedule, keeping the focus on what Miami needs to do next while leaving the conversation with Saban hanging just enough to invite more interest the next time the two are in the same orbit. [Read more 🡒]
Jai Lucas Just Gave Miami Fans Another Reason To Believe
After one season that changed the tone around the program, Jai Lucas is no longer just the new coach trying to prove he belongs in Coral Gables. He has agreed to a new five-year contract with Miami after guiding the Hurricanes to a 19-win improvement, a jump that tied the NCAA Division I record for the biggest single-season turnaround and sent the team back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2023.
The extension gives Miami something it did not have much of before Lucas arrived: stability at the top. It also shuts down the kind of offseason chatter that tends to follow a breakthrough year, when other jobs start to look tempting and uncertainty can creep in almost as fast as momentum. For a program trying to turn one strong season into a lasting standard, keeping Lucas in place matters just as much as the turnaround itself. [Read more 🡒]
Mario Cristobal And Darian Mensah Are Fueling Miami's Biggest Hype Yet
Mario Cristobal has spent enough time in big football settings to know that reputation only goes so far, but Miamis latest buzz is built around more than just name recognition. BetMGM recently ranked Cristobal and quarterback Darian Mensah as the top head coach-quarterback duo in college football, a notable nod for a program that has spent recent years trying to turn promise into substance. Cristobals path from FIU to Oregon and now Miami has always carried the sense of a builder, and the Hurricanes have started to look like a team trying to match that image with actual progress.
The real pressure now is whether that hype can translate into the kind of season Miami has been chasing. The Hurricanes have shown improvement, and the expectations around them are no longer subtle, with an ACC title and a return to the College Football Playoff very much in view. Mensahs arrival only sharpens the spotlight on Cristobal, because at Miami the conversation is never just about potential for long. It quickly becomes about whether the results are finally ready to catch up. [Read more 🡒]