Notre Dame may have caught a break before its November 7 meeting with Miami, and it comes on the defensive side of the ball.
Miami coach Mario Cristobal said Monday that junior cornerback OJ Frederique, one of the Hurricanes’ top players at the position, will be sidelined for “quite a while” after suffering a left shoulder injury. Frederique played only two snaps in Miami’s 45-6 win over Stanford on Friday before leaving the game.
"OJ suffered a pretty significant injury so he will be down for quite a while," Cristobal said during his first appearance before the press heading into Week 2.
If Frederique is still out when the Hurricanes visit Notre Dame, junior Damari Brown is the likeliest replacement. Brown stepped in after Frederique exited and is expected to handle the job over the next few weeks.
"Damari looked good," Cristobal added. "Damari did a lot of good stuff.
He's very physical. We put those guys on an island sometimes, and that's tough duty, and for the most part did a really good job.
He's very physical in the run game and on pressure."
Miami’s lopsided win over Stanford gave the Hurricanes a chance to test some younger players as well, in case Brown has to keep holding down the spot.
On paper, the change may not look dramatic. Frederique posted a 62.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus in 2025, after earning a 76.2 grade in 2024. Brown has been effective in limited action this season, with a 75.9 overall grade and a pass coverage grade near 80.
Even so, Cristobal’s comments made it clear Miami views Frederique as a real loss.
If the injury stretches into November, it adds another wrinkle to a matchup that already carries plenty of weight. The game is a rematch of the season opener, when Miami won on a last-second score, and it could help decide a College Football Playoff berth.
Miami’s offense looked every bit as dangerous against Stanford, with Malachi Toney putting together a huge day in support of his Heisman Trophy push. He caught 12 passes for 234 yards and 3 touchdowns.
He may not even be the Hurricanes’ biggest Heisman threat. Transfer quarterback Darian Mensah was even sharper, completing 27 of 30 passes for 401 yards and 5 touchdowns.
For Notre Dame, Leonard Moore and the rest of the defense are still dealing with the sting of last fall’s season-opening loss. And if Frederique remains out, CJ Carr and the Irish offense may avoid having to face one of Miami’s more respected defenders on the outside.
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Notre Dame landing so high this early is the part that matters for a team with postseason expectations, because the ranking says the opener did not do anything to cool national optimism. Miami and Georgia round out the rest of the top five, which is a reminder that the Irish are already being measured against the same blue-chip standard as the sports biggest brands. It is early, of course, but the first FPI update is one more sign that every week from here on will carry real weight. [Read more 🡒]