Despite Wednesday’s reports that Miami wide receiver and Heisman Trophy hopeful Malachi Toney was facing ankle surgery and would be unavailable for Saturday’s premier matchup vs. Notre Dame, Fighting Irish coach Marcus Freeman and his staff were still preparing in case Toney was in the lineup for the clash.
“We’ll see if he plays or not,” Freeman said Thursday. “We have to make sure we have a plan if he plays, if he doesn’t, we’ll adjust.”
Toney had put himself in position to be one of the four finalists for college football’s most prestigious award with his production through eight games. He has 73 receptions for 1,027 yards and 13 receiving touchdowns, which rank him second, third and tied for second, respectively, at the FBS level.
But, according to the Miami program, Toney rolled his ankle in practice on Wednesday and subsequent reports indicated that the Liberty City, Fla. native would miss several weeks, but should return for the postseason.
Freeman is still wary of top-ranked Miami’s other weapons as his No. 11 Fighting Irish prepare for the Hurricanes to visit South Bend.
“I’m not saying one person’s going to replace Malachi Toney, but they’ve got a lot of great players on their team,” Freeman said.
But the drop-off from Toney to the other two primary Miami wideouts is immense. Cooper Barkate has 28 receptions for 372 and four touchdowns, while Daylyn Upshaw has caught 22 passes for 263 yards and two scores.