Few coaches would arrive at a new school and instantly declare their inherited talent to be national-title-caliber. Forget that. No coach would do that. Certainly not Mark Richt, who in 30 years as a coach and assistant has been a part of two national title teams (1993, 1999 at Florida State) and had a couple title-worthy teams at Georgia.
When Richt took over in December and assessed his roster, he realized the cupboard wasn’t bare. He had some talent and wasn’t afraid to say it. The issue: He didn’t have enough of it. He didn’t have nearly enough scholarship wide receivers or cornerbacks, and the linebacker group was a little light, too.
That problem was exacerbated between those taking-stock days and the start of fall practices. Several players expected to compete for backup jobs, at least, transferred or were booted from the program for off-the-field issues. On the eve of the season, two of Miami’s best overall players, a starting linebacker and a defensive end, were dismissed for NCAA violations.
Depth issues? Definitely.
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