RedHawk Insider: Football Camp Practice No. 6

OXFORD, Ohio— Grant Lyons wasted no time.

The redshirt senior got around the edge for a sack on the first play of the first team period today to highlight a strong morning for the Miami defensive line.

"I think a lot of guys had a solid day, and it started off with that first team period," said defensive line coach Isiah Dunning. "Grant Lyons really set the tone and made a couple plays early. Bai Jobe was in the backfield all day in pass situations.

"It's been pretty much like that. A lot of guys are showing flashes. The biggest thing is: We've got talent. We've got some pretty good players. But how consistent can we be day-in and day-out?"

The D-line obviously needs to replace the productivity of former RedHawk Adam Trick this fall, a standout who ranked among the top 25 players nationally last season with 8.5 sacks. Head coach Chuck Martin referenced not only Trick's consistency, but his understanding of the scheme, his 'motor' and his desire to get to the football as reasons Trick was successful.

And while this year's pass rush may be more 'by committee', Lyons and company are taking the long view toward once again developing a dominant front.

"We have a lot of talented guys out here," Lyons said after practice. "It's going to be important for us to keep coming and not get discouraged. They're going to make plays on that side of the ball, and we're going to make plays on our side of the ball, [but the] compete level is our secret sauce this year, I think.

"If you look at Miami Football and our past [few years], we've started off maybe not as hot early in the season, playing against really good football teams...but if you look at how far we've come during a season, it's because we're pushing each other so hard throughout the course of the season [and] just consistently getting better.

"I've been here for five years," Lyons continued. "I've worked my tail off every day I've stepped in this building. I had parents that raised me that way, that there's no day off. That's how you get better."

Miami is scheduled to practice again on Thursday morning, August 13 in Oxford.

PLAY OF THE DAY: Wideouts Braylon Isom and Damarion Witten were both very involved in the offense during team periods today, making several downfield receptions apiece. Isom highlighted the morning by elevating for a contested touchdown catch in the left corner of the end zone a few minutes before practice concluded.

INSIDE SLANT: One of the first D-line drills in an individual period this morning involved the tackles and ends working on footwork as they drove out of their stance. Dunning took time to illustrate the appropriate movement to his players, emphasizing how the RedHawks needed to 'gain more ground' and really move forward in the first three steps out of the gate.

"The biggest thing is eyes, hands and feet," he explained after practice. "That's what they probably hear me say the most; that's the world we live in because that's how our play starts.

"Do I have my eyes in the right spot? Well, now I can put my hands and feet in the right spot and play with the proper leverage and pad level. We're always working on those reactions: What I'm going to see from the offensive line and being prepared to take the proper footwork to attack those blocks."

UNSUNG HEROES: Roosevelt Andrews III started 13 games a year ago in the middle of the Miami defensive line but only had 19 tackles to show for it. The RedHawks' scheme usually requires Andrews to draw attention from multiple opposing offensive linemen at once, freeing up the linebackers behind him to make a stop.

And Andrews doesn't mind that role one bit.

"It's a position that if you do your job really [well], you end up making less tackles because they're going to stay on you in the double-teams," he shrugged. "So you just have to put your head down and work, honestly."

"Our D-tackles are doing a lot of the dirty work," Dunning added. "They've got to be selfless guys; they've got to eat up a lot of double-teams...

"And then when you get an opportunity to make a play, are you making that play or not? Because if the guys are making plays and doing their job at a high level, those are the guys that the coaches want to trust to put on the field.

"And it's a good problem to have for me because I've got a room full of them."

EYEBALL EMOJI: Miami's running backs have impressed during the first week of camp, and today was no exception. Redshirt senior Cade Yacamelli, a Wisconsin transfer, found space up the middle on multiple occasions today to rattle off solid gains for the offense.

ABCs: James Schott, redshirt junior defensive lineman, jersey no. 32
Get to know a player on the 2026 Miami Football team in their own words.

Attributes and Adjectives: What are three words that describe you as a player or a person?
"I would say passionate. Enthusiastic - I just like to bring energy anywhere I go. And just happy. I feel like I'm blessed to wake up every single day and I try to carry that mentality to my teammates.

"Even if it's a Monday, the start of fall camp: I'm going to try to show up, be blessed that I can walk, talk, speak, see and really just breathe, [that I] woke up. Just showing up [and] just being happy; loving what you're doing."

Background Bio: What brought you to Miami? How did you get here?
"I played football starting in third grade and played in Indianapolis at Center Grove High School. I was a four-year player there. Then I ended up going to Michigan State for three years. Got to learn from great coaches...people that were in the league. They were vets, honestly...

"Those first three years there, I feel like I really stepped back as more of a viewer; really learned football, learned the X's and O's, learned just the ins-and-outs of football and picked up fundamentals.

"Then I come here and I feel like I really get to show that with everyone here. Coach Zeek [Dunning] obviously is still teaching me a lot day in and day out, but...I'm able to bounce stuff off of him: Kind of 'conversate' more than just him leading the conversation. I feel like that comes from me having a little bit of experience at Michigan State, learning football, and then coming here and just being able to work with Coach Martin and Coach Zeek and really just be two people working towards one goal, not just one guy coaching another."

Compare/Contrast: Who do you try and model your game after? "Maxx Crosby. I love the way he moves. I love his tenacity. His mentality...it doesn't matter who is lined up in front of him. He's going to get off the ball and it's going to be a rough day for you. Then on top of that, doing the best he can at the highest level of football that there is [with] his ability to get north-and-south and his lateral quickness. I just really enjoy watching him and think that if I can be half the player he was, I'm going to be a great football player."
And what sets you apart from other people at your position?
"I would say definitely my length. I've got almost a seven-foot wingspan, so getting an O-lineman off of me is a lot easier for me than other people maybe that are not as long."

Drive and Desire: Why do you play the game? What drives you to excel?
"It's honestly my family. I've got six brothers and two sisters. I'm the second-youngest of all of them. All of my siblings...my dad, my mom, my stepmom...they're all just great people.

"I know with having a support system like that behind me that they're going to be watching every single thing that gets put out or every single thing I say and that they're just proud of me. They love me, and they wouldn't want anything but the best for me."

External Evaluation: Scouting report from a Miami coach or teammate.
"James is an incredible teammate. He shows up here every day with the right mindset. He works his tail off. He brings energy and enthusiasm. Along with that, he's a great player. He's athletic, he's tall [and] he's long. He plays with a great get-off and great hands." -Grant Lyons

Fun Facts: Share one or two interesting things about you that the average fan (or maybe even people on your team) might not know.
"Probably me having eight siblings – that's a big fun fact. It's my biggest blessing in my life, having a big family. Another one is probably that I play the piano. I like playing the piano a lot. My dad taught me since third grade. I know how to read sheet music, which I feel like is a lost art honestly, nowadays."

Golf Group: If you could assemble your dream foursome for a day at the golf course (anyone in the world past or present), who would you choose and why?
"John Daly and John Daly's son (he plays golf at Arkansas), Maxx Crosby, and probably Tiger Woods. Tiger might be my favorite golfer."

LOUD NOISES: Practice seemed louder than normal this morning (perhaps because of all the chatter and yelling echoing off the walls of the Dauch Indoor Sports Center and drowning out the thunder and lightning outside?). Multiple coaches referenced 'urgency' as a priority in drills. And before the team period started, Martin made a point to come over to the defensive sideline with his playsheet and engage in some light-hearted trash talk with the defense.

"Defense, it's gonna be a long day!", he said with a grin to the red-clad veterans in front of him before heading back to call the first offensive play.

The defenders didn't seem to mind one bit. "To play D-line, you have to be a little crazy, and to play this sport in general, you have to be a little crazy," Lyons said. "Anytime these pads are strapped up and the helmets buckled up, that's got to be our mindset...you've got to 'see red' and just go attack every day. If your mindset's not aggression and physicality...then you're a step behind."

"It's an emotional game," Martin elaborated later in our post-practice interview after telling his team that this morning was the 'best one yet' in terms of overall energy and competition. "It's just practice, but if you don't bring the emotion, you're not going to get better. You have to bring it every day, and it's hard because camp is monotonous. It's day after day, not like the regular season. But today, we had good energy, and I think we got a lot done."

For more inside coverage of Miami Athletics, bookmark RedHawk Insider. Miss a fall camp report? Catch up with our daily MiamiRedHawks.com notebooks: Aug. 11 | Aug. 8 | Aug. 6 | Aug. 5

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RedHawk Insider: Football Camp Practice No. 6

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Players Mentioned

Roosevelt Andrews III

Braylon Isom

Bai Jobe

Grant Lyons

James Schott

Adam Trick

Damarion Witten

Cade Yacamelli

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