CBS Sports names DL Akheem Mesidor Miami football impact transfer
Defensive lineman Akheem Mesidor has been named the impact transfer for the Miami football team by CBS Sports. CBS Sports examined “ACC football transfers: Pitt eyes Kenny Pickett’s replacement while FSU, Miami add defensive stars.” Mesidor is one of 11 transfers new to Miami in 2022.
Mesidor has been named as the top transfer to the Miami football program by several media outlets during the 2022 offseason. Former UCLA linebacker Caleb Johnson who is projected to start for Miami has also been named as the top transfer for the Hurricanes ahead of the 2022 season by other media outlets.
Edge rusher Mitchell Agude who played with Johnson at UCLA and Mesidor are expected to give a huge boost to the Miami pass rush. Mesidor can play on the edge or inside for Miami. The Hurricanes need Mesidor more as an edge rusher than at tackle. Defensive tackle projects to be the deepest position for Miami.
Miami returns projected starters Jared Harrison-Hunte and Leonard Taylor at DT. Jahfari Harvey and Chantz Williams were part of the rotation at defensive end last season, but Agude and Mesidor project as the likely starting edge rushers for Miami in 2022. Miami brought in five transfer defensive linemen.
Miami DT Akheem Mesidor
Miami narrowly edged out Florida State for the top-ranked transfer portal class in the ACC thanks in part to landing a handful of defensive players with Power Five starting experience.
Mesidor is the star of the group after picking up Third-Team All-Big 12 honors at West Virginia last season, and he returns to the state of Florida a much different prospect than when he was playing high school ball at Clearwater Academy International.
A native of Ottawa, Mesidor has matured from a raw, 195-pound prospect ranked outside the top 500 nationally into a 6-foot-2, 272-pound disruptor on the interior that totaled 38 tackles, eight tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2021.
If Mesidor and the rest of the defensive transfers can mesh with a talented young core that includes Leonard Taylor on the defensive line and James Williams in the secondary, the Hurricanes will have a roster capable of bringing some hardware to the trophy case in Year 1 of the Mario Cristobal era.
In addition to Mesidor, Miami added transfer DL Darrel Jackson from Maryland, Jacob Lichtenstein from USC and Antonio Moultrie from UAB. Jackson is a defensive tackle, Lichtenstein and Moultrie provide Miami with the versatility to play end or tackle. Four new transfers project to start for Miami on defense in 2022.
In addition to Agude, Johnson and Mesidor, former West Virginia cornerback Darryl Porter Jr. is expected to start for the Miami football team in 2022. Add 2021 transfer Tyrique Stevenson from Georgia and nearly half the projected starters on the 2022 Miami defense began their collegiate careers with other programs.
