If you want to understand why Miami’s defensive tackle room feels different, start with the third and fourth names on the list.
That’s not hyperbole from the outside looking in. Around this program, the belief is that Ahmad Moten Sr. and Justin Scott give the Hurricanes a baseline that would make most ACC teams jealous, and the talent behind them is strong enough to change the whole conversation. This is a room with real weight to it.
Moten and Scott are the headliners, and they’ve done nothing in camp to shake that status. Both opened last season slowly before settling into their identities as the year went on, and by the time Miami reached the championship game, both were right there among the best players on the field.
Moten kept trending upward as the season moved along. Scott kept climbing the chart, too, eventually becoming the kind of pro-style interior player Miami wants: calm, efficient, and all business.
That steady picture hasn’t changed in camp. Former Hurricanes wide receiver Ahmmon Richards summed it up this way: "I've heard nothing negative. I've only heard positives, and what I've seen is they looked locked in."
For a team leaning on its top two tackles, that’s exactly what you want two weeks out.
Then comes the wrinkle that makes the room dangerous: Jarquez Carter.
Carter is from Newberry, Fla., and Miami tried to recruit him out of high school before he went to Ohio State. He’s back home now, and camp has turned him into one of the biggest surprises on the roster.
He looked solid in spring, but the first scrimmage at Hard Rock reportedly showed something more. Richards didn’t shy away from the upside, saying, "If you look at these ACC teams ... he's probably the best player on maybe all of them in terms of the defensive tackle room.
To have that guy as your third, fourth defensive tackle is a blessing."
That kind of presence matters because Carter isn’t just eating snaps. He’s blowing up double teams and forcing consistent pocket pressure, the sort of interior disruption that usually doesn’t show up by accident. In a lot of ACC rooms, he’d be a starter without much debate.
And then there’s Keona Davis, who sounds like the kind of player you’d draw up if you were trying to build a defensive tackle from scratch.
Davis came over from Nebraska after playing a 4i role there, the thankless kind of job where the work is physical, dirty, and rarely glamorous. What stands out now is the combination of length, strength, and nonstop effort.
He’s also being developed differently at Miami. Damione Lewis is working to turn him into a more complete player instead of just letting him run around on instinct.
Davis and Armondo Blount are used in similar ways at times, with both able to slide outside to defensive end in certain packages.
If you want a Miami comparison, Allen Bailey is the name that fits best. A tweener who grew into a true defensive tackle and went on to a long NFL career doing exactly this kind of work in the trenches.
The depth behind those four is real, too, and the competition for the next spots is still alive.
Logan Nagle, a freshman from New Jersey, brings more twitch than his frame might suggest and already has a knack for finding the backfield. Mykah Newton has bulked up to around 280 and is getting first- and second-team work. Keshawn Stancil may have the highest ceiling of that trio; he’s dealt with a few minor nicks, but he’s also flashed the most on tape, especially with quick hands and a feel for finesse moves that’s rare for a true freshman on the defensive line.
No one has separated yet, and that’s by design. Camp isn’t supposed to hand out every answer.
The staff wants consistency before anyone claims the fifth or sixth spot in the rotation. Even so, the bigger picture is hard to miss: four disruptive interior players already in place, with three more freshmen pushing hard from behind.
And in the current college football market, that kind of depth is gold. Oregon lost its entire backup defensive tackle room this offseason to teams like Alabama and Notre Dame, which says plenty about how prized proven depth at this position has become. Miami kept its two established starters and added meaningful depth on top of them.
That’s not common. It’s a major reason this tackle room looks the way it does.
In Other News...
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For Miami, the wrinkle is obvious: Bissainthe is a former Hurricanes linebacker who played a significant role for the program, and a ruling like this creates the kind of unexpected roster conversation teams never see coming. The order takes direct aim at recent SEC policies limiting former professional athletes from returning to college sports, and while the legal fight is far from settled, it leaves open the possibility that Miami could suddenly be facing a decision on a familiar name. [Read more 🡒]
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Miami Is Still In A Huge Fight For This Five Star Guard
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The next step is the one that usually starts to separate contenders from the rest, with official visits lined up for the fall. For Miami, that means the staff will have a chance to make its best case in person, but it also means the battle for Daughtry is only getting more crowded from here. He is a priority target for the Hurricanes, and the coming months should tell a lot about whether they can keep pace with the other schools still pushing hard. [Read more 🡒]