The Hurricanes got a welcome boost to their defense for Saturday’s playoff win over Texas A&M.
Defensive back Keionte Scott battled back to rejoin the lineup after missing three games with a foot injury, and it looked like he did not miss a beat.
“I put all my attention to trying to focus on getting better and getting healthy,” Scott said.
Scott was a dominant force in the win. He racked up a team-leading 10 tackles with three tackles for loss and two sacks. He also forced a fumble.
“I thought his mentality and the way he attacked it to get back on the field is an amazing job by him and our training staff and everyone involved,” UM defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman said. “But you can tell the way he prepares for the game, how fast he plays. And right when he jumped back into it, you’re always (wondering): How is he feeling? Right away from Day 1 in practice, he was full speed. … Everything that he shows on the field on a Saturday, he was doing (in) Tuesday’s practice or Wednesday’s practice. You could tell he was full go right from that spot. He was ready to get back out there.
“The hardest thing is just do your job. When you get out there, just do your job, stay within the defense. And he did exactly that.”
Scott’s success as Miami’s slot cornerback was not a given. The veteran defensive back had a poor season at Auburn last year as he dealt with an ankle injury and primarily played outside cornerback. He had 18 tackles with no pass deflections or interceptions. He did not have any tackles for loss or sacks either. Pro Football Focus gave him a 48.1 defensive grade — by far the lowest of his career.
But the Hurricanes pitched him on a different role, and he has flourished in it. Scott has 54 tackles, an interception (which he returned for a touchdown) and five pass deflections. PFF gives him a career-best 86.7 coverage grade.
Scott has also excelled at stopping opponents in the backfield. He has 13 tackles for loss and five sacks — both career-bests by a long shot. PFF gives him a 91.4 run-defense grade and an 82 pass-rush grade, which rank second and sixth nationally, respectively (among corners with 50 or more run-defense snaps or 10 pass-rush snaps).
“He’s a versatile player” defensive end Akheem Mesidor said. “As a little guy, like, he’s in the box, filling in, helping support in the run. When he’s coming off the edge, he has a good bend. He uses his chop. … he’ll come do some passer stuff with us on the sideline during special teams or whenever he’s not on the field. But, man, he’s just super versatile, and it’s just great for him to be. I love playing with him.”
Scott said he may not have been able to predict his and his team’s success when he was deciding on his future team, but everything he thought could happen is coming true.
“My biggest thing was to focus on the outer things, the things I could control in a situation and making sure it was a good opportunity,” Scott said. “And I feel like all those boxes have been checked. Everything the coaches have (said), their main pitches to me while I was in the portal — and all the things are happening (and) have (come) alive. So I’m definitely grateful for the situation, grateful for the coaches, grateful for the university, and I’m just blessed.”
