Miami Hurricanes 50-1 Countdown: Ranking the top 50 post-spring players … No. 38 Jacurri Brown
No. 50 Miami DT Thomas Gore … No. 49 Malik Curtis … No. 48 Kaleb Spencer … No. 47 Ahmad Moten … No. 46 Jaden Harris … No. 45 Logan Sagapolu … No. 44 Markeith Williams … No. 43 Frank Ladson … No. 42 Chris Graves … No. 41 Keontra Smith … No. 40 Robby Washington … No. 39 Emory Williams
CaneSport is breaking down the top 50 post-spring players on the roster, a list that doesn’t include any post-spring roster additions. Today we break down No. 38, Jacurri Brown.
NO. 38 MIAMI QB JACURRI BROWN
Why he’s No. 38
A four-star signee in last year’s class, Brown was rated one of the top dual-threat QBs before arriving at Miami – in both his junior and senior seasons at Lowndes High School in Georgia he passed for over 1,000 yards and threw for over 1,000 yards. Brown began his freshman year in 2022 as the third-team QB behind Tyler Van Dyke and Jake Garcia. But after Van Dyke was hurt and Garcia struggled, Brown got his chance with two starts in Miami’s final three games. But aside from his ability running his passing game was an issue. He struggled with accuracy and ended with 230 total passing yards on the season with three TDs and three INTs. He also had 223 rush yards including a long of 40 yards. His best game? That was vs. Georgia Tech when he hit on 14 of 19 passes for 136 yards with three scores. But all his other performances saw struggles (5-9, 37 yards, INT vs. FSU; 6-13, 53 yards, INT vs. Clemson and 2-3, 4 yards, INT against Pitt). Overall Brown graded out fine at 72.4 percent per Pro Football Focus, but that was skewed to his running grade of 79.9. As a passer he was a subpar 49.5 percent (with 70 considered a good grade). He also didn’t complete a single pass of 20 or more yards through the air, going 0-5 and grading out at 27.8 percent in those situations. So there was a lot left to be desired there. This spring Brown was Van Dyke’s backup ahead of true freshman Emory Williams with Garcia gone to Missouri. Also of note: Brown has packed on 30 pounds of muscle since arriving at UM last year, up to 225.
What he needs to do to move up this list
The conventional wisdom for college players is their biggest growth year is from their freshman season to their redshirt freshman or sophomore year, and Brown showed some nice strides this spring with improved accuracy and mechanics. But he did have some struggles in the spring game. Still, he has an NFL arm and showed his skill when he tucks it down and runs. If he puts it all together he can be one of the ACC’s most dangerous QBs. “I learned that I can throw as good as I can run,” Brown said midway through this spring. “Where I’ve grown the most is throwing from the pocket, being calm and going through progressions, just working hard with my guys, being a leader too.”
Realistic season objective
Is it fair to expect a complete turnaround off last year? Probably not. But it is a new offense under Shannon Dawson that is friendly to dual threat QBs – just ask Houston QB Clayton Tune, who threw for 4,074 yards with 40 TDs while running for 546 yards with five scores on the ground last year. So if called upon backing up Van Dyke then we can see Brown having a lot more success this year. But Brown’s first task this fall is making sure coaches see his consistency with decision-making and accuracy … if not freshman Emory Williams will be right on Brown’s heels trying to steal away that No. 2 job. A final thought? We’ll leave you with this, from Mario Cristobal this spring on Brown: “From a progression standpoint, learning standpoint and having a QB coach in the room, it all makes sense,” Cristobal said. “He has progressed. All we have to do is make sure that him and all the quarterbacks are systematic, that they’re playing within the system but without being a robot. That’s what this system does best, and our players have enjoyed it because of that. There’s discipline, but also some wiggle room to go and make plays, and he certainly has done a really good job of that.”
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