July Player Performance Index top 30 deep dive: No. 29 DT Josh Horton

CaneSport is breaking down the top 30 Miami players on the roster based on projected production, and today we’re at No. 29. DT Josh Horton.

THE BIG PICTURE

Horton might have factored into the shorthanded defensive tackle depth chart as a true freshman last year if not for his arrival late in the summer. He simply had a lot of catching up to do. And this spring he was limited by injury. So we really haven’t seen his potential at Miami, but coaches are very high on his combination of size and agility. While Horton is likely to be a backup this season with the expectation that transfers CJ Clark (NC State) and Simeon Barrow (Michigan State) will start, he’s likely to be in the two-deep at a position that needs to find some quality depth (Middle Tennessee transfer Marley Cook and DE/DT Akheem Mesidor are probably the other two main guys here as of now). And don’t rule out Horton pushing to start if he starts to live up to his potential. At 6-5 and pushing past 300 pounds he has the size and strength you want and just needs some seasoning.

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THE ANALYSIS

Horton redshirted last season, seeing action in just three games (Miami-Ohio, Bethune-Cookman, Temple) and getting in on 32 defensive reps. In that limited sample size Pro Football Focus graded him out at 69.9 percent overall (70.8 run defense, 70.1 tackle grade, 62.4 pass rush) and noted him with two QB pressures. A former four-star prospect, he had 123 tackles 13 QB hits, four sacks and two forced fumbles as a high school senior, when he had other offers from the likes of Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Mississippi State and Tennessee. His upside is tremendous once he “gets it” on defense.

THE PROJECTION

Is Horton going to get starter reps? Probably not, unless he really shows out in fall camp. But we still see him in the two-deep inside, and with Lance Guidry showing last year he likes a heavy rotation, that probably means 200+ reps (for example Jacob Lichtenstein had 150 reps and Thomas Gore 167 last year). We can see Horton being effective as a run stopper and pushing the pocket backward. Maybe in the neighborhood of 20+ tackles with a couple of sacks is the bar to set for him.

THE JUMP HE NEEDS FROM SPRING TO FALL CAMP

Horton was banged up in the spring, so this is going to be a big fall camp for him. He really hasn’t gotten many chances to show what he can do as a late enrollee last summer and then not getting a lot of in-season opportunities. Year 2 can start to lay the foundation for him starting and becoming one of those standout tackles that Miami needs to start developing as opposed to what they had to do this year, which was grab three inside guys out of the portal (Clark, Barrow, Cook).

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