Miami Hurricanes 50-1 Countdown: Ranking the top 50 post-spring players … No. 29 Marley Cook
The Miami Hurricanes have massively reshaped the roster from a year ago with five primary offensive starters gone (QB Tyler Van Dyke, RB Henry Parrish, WR Colbie Young, OL Javion Cohen and Matt Lee) along with seven on the defensive side (DT Leonard Taylor, DT Branson Deen, DL Jared Harrison-Hunte, S Kam Kinchens, S James Williams, CB Jaden Davis and CB Te’Cory Couch).
50. RB JORDAN LYLE … 49. RB CHRISTOPHER JOHNSON … 48. DE COLE MCCONATHY … 47. S ZAQUAN PATTERSON … 46. TE CAM MCCORMICK … 45. NY CARR … 44. JUSTIN SCOTT … 43. OT Markel Bell … 42. RB AJAY ALLEN … 41. TE RILEY WILLIAMS … 40. OL MATTHEW MCCOY … 39. LB CAM PRUITT … 38. DT JOSHUA HORTON … 37. LB RAUL AGUIRRE … 36. S MARKEITH WILLIAMS … 35. S JADEN HARRIS … 34. QB EMORY WILLIAMS … 33. WR JOJO TRADER … 32. D’YONI HILL … 31. RAY RAY JOSEPH … 30. ISAIAH HORTON
Which brings us to our annual series breaking down the top 50 players on the current roster. As we go along on this list you’ll get an idea of the overall depth of talent on Mario Cristobal’s team this year as he seeks Miami’s second 10-win season in the last two decades.
Today we are at No. 29:
NO. 29 DT MARLEY COOK
Why He’s No. 29
Cook may be on the outside looking in for a starting job behind fellow transfer portal additions CJ Clark (NC State) and Simeon Barrow (Michigan State), but don’t overlook the fact that we fully expect Cook to get plenty of reps as a key two-deep piece on the interior of the line. There simply isn’t much returning DT depth, with redshirt freshman Josh Horton and seldom used Ahmad Moten the only other non-true freshmen tackles aside Clark and Cook (note that Simeon Barrow’s status is up in the air and ends Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor can also work inside in passing situations). Cook may not be the biggest guy at a listed 6-2 and 306 pounds, but he’s one of the strongest – he broke the school record with a 705-pound squat. So he’s difficult to move out of his spot and can be a valuable run-stopper.
Cook arrived at Miami after starting the last two years for Middle Tennessee. In 2022 he had 22 tackles, 9.5 TFL and 6.5 sacks along with 35 QB hurries, then this past season had 22 tackles, 6.5 TFL and a sack along with 15 QB hurries. Per Pro Football Focus, Cook graded out at 72.9 percent overall this season (622 reps, 75.6 run defense grade, 43.8 tackle grade, 70.3 pass rush). In 2022 he graded out at 85.2 percent (613 reps, 73.1 percent run defense, 64.7 percent tackle, 90.1 percent pass rush). He played 365 reps in 2021 (68.9 grade) and 135 reps in 2020 (56.0 grade). He was originally lightly recruited in the Class of 2019.
What he needs to do to move up this list
Cook is to some extent what you see – he’s not going to wow you with his height or length but his stout lower body combined with his strength makes him very tough to push off his spot. He can be very effective against running teams but will likely struggle a bit to get after the quarterback or make game-changing plays in the backfield at this higher level of play.
Realistic season objective
We can see Cook getting significant reps and perhaps even starting next to CJ Clark with Simeon Barrow perhaps no longer winding up at Miami. Cook is probably not going to get many sacks or tackles for loss, but he can force runs into lanes where linebackers and other defenders are waiting to make the play. Perhaps his biggest challenge to starting is going to be Josh Horton … if Barrow winds up not coming.
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