ANALYSIS: Will Chris Wheatley-Humphrey’s unbelievable high school production translate to Miami?

After seeing Miami commit Chris Wheatley-Humphrey’s stats, I had to do a double take. Did Miami’s latest 2024 3-star running back commit from Hollywood (Fla.) South Broward really rack up 1,166 yards rushing on 70 carries last season? With eight touchdowns and averaging over 100 yards per game?

Yeah, he did. And about 60 seconds of his highlight tape removes any doubt of what he was capable of as a high school junior.

Wheatley-Humphrey isn’t the biggest or the most agile, but he might be the fastest — a trait that’s far too valuable on the football field. His play style isn’t too far removed from Hurricanes 2023 running back signee Christopher Johnson, although perhaps not as refined or agile.

Most of his production during his junior season came from simply out-running his defenders, and South Broward continually found ways to get him the ball in playmaking positions. Sometimes that meant swinging him wide for a flare screen; sometimes that meant popping him the ball on a jet sweep; and sometimes that meant lining him up as a wildcat quarterback, letting him take the snap directly and simply find a hole to exploit.

Regardless of how Wheatley-Humphrey got the ball, he was productive. And the more space his coaching staff was able to create for him, the more explosive he became.

MaxPreps lists Wheatley-Humphrey with a longest touchdown run of 80 yards last season and a longest touchdown reception of 67 yards, neither of which should be a surprise with his lightning-in-a-bottle play style. At 5-foot-11.5 and 170 pounds, he’s not yet built to take 15-20 carries per game like 2023 running back signee Mark Fletcher, but he’ll be one of the faster players on the roster by the time he gets to Coral Gables.

Adding weight will be Wheatley-Humphrey’s biggest challenge once he arrives on campus as Miami fans would hope he can add at least 15-20 pounds, but otherwise the coaching staff will be able to mostly focus on refining his skillset. There has been no question about his production at the high school level which also helped him draw attention from programs like Ole Miss and Louisville, but it’s unlikely he’ll continue to put up the same video game-like numbers against programs like Florida State and Clemson.

If developed to his full potential, Wheatley-Humphrey could be a great running back to use in 10 and 11 personnel packages against nickel and dime defenses or could find real production as a scat back.

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