‘Ready for 50 Carries’: RB Mark Fletcher Embraces Workhorse Role in Miami’s National Title Push

You can point to any number of reasons on both sides of the ball plus coaching for why the Miami Hurricanes have reached this point playing for the national title game on Monday night at Hard Rock Stadium vs. undefeated Indiana. Looming as large as any of them: The power run game of Mark Fletcher. He entered the postseason with three 100-yard games … and now has run for 172 yards vs. Texas A&M, 90 against Ohio State and 133 in the most recent win over Ole Miss.

“It definitely feels like the National Championship,” Fletcher said at the Miami Hurricanes national title game media day. “It’s just a blessing that we’re able to do it where it all started, and that’s the Hard Rock. Simply a blessing to do it back at home.

“Extremely blessed for this opportunity. And we just can’t wait, excited for this challenge versus a great team.”

With the game almost here, Fletcher says the preparation process doesn’t change.

“Just sticking to my same process, you know, how I go throughout the week, staying focused, watching film, extra recovery, all those things like that,” he said. “I don’t really think it feels different. We’re sticking to our same process. Trying to go 1-0, sticking to it.”

Fletcher says a turning point for the team was the loss to SMU, the team’s second in a three-game span. A team meeting afterward put things on the right track, and Miami hasn’t lost since.

“I feel like we just had to make a decision, like, realize who we are,” Fletcher said. “And we just had to continue to emphasize that throughout the week, every day, like. We just had to find out who we were. And we’re the Miami Hurricanes. We just had to live that every single day with everything that we do.

“Everybody was willing to sacrifice for the greater good. Everybody put their own accolades to the side, and it was just strictly just everything was a team move from everybody, like we all made our mindset to come together. Nobody’s selfish, no anything, no own accolades. We all just bonded together and we all bought in.”

So is Fletcher ready for 25 carries if his number is called?

“I’m ready for 50 carries!” Fletcher says. “I don’t care how many. However they you know we need to get the job done I’m ready to do whatever.”

Fletcher says “it’s going to take everything” to win this game.

“We’re going to have to cut it loose,” he said.

He adds of the game week prep from coordinator Shannon Dawson that “(I) love the game plan, love the game plan. We just gotta roll.”

Miami, of course, has come quite a way to reach this point. And not just the 5-7 and 7-5 starts to Mario Cristobal’s tenure that then reached 10 wins last year. This is a team that almost didn’t even make the playoffs this year, right? This team has overcome it all.

“You’ve got to go through some bad times to appreciate the good times,’ Fletcher said. “We knew, like, when I signed here, when C.C. (Mauigoa), (Rueben) Bain, you know, guys who have been here since the start and things was 5-7, we all just, like, we seen The U as little kids, we seen the U be great, we seen The U on top.

“The fact we had an opportunity to come back and be the ones who could change the trajectory of the university, that’s what we wanted to do. And we just trusted and believed in ourselves and here we are now.”

Yes, the excitement is palpable for this final game.

“It would mean everything to us (to win),” Fletcher said. “It would mean everything to us to finish it off where it all started from. And what better place to do it than at home?”

As for upcoming opponent Indiana? The offense averages 42.6 points and 461.0 yards per game (218.3 rushing), and the defense only gives up 11.1 points and 260.9 yards (just 75.0 rushing).

On defense there are standouts all over the place. Up front DT Tyrique Tucker (first team All-Big 10, 11.5 TFL, 5.5 sacks) and DE Mikail Kamara (honorable mention all-conference, seven TFL, two sacks) are playmakers, and at linebacker first team all-conference selection Aiden Fisher (93 tackles, 9.5 TFL, 3.5 sacks, 2 INTs) and second team pick Rolijah Hardy (team high 98 tackles, 15 TFL, team high 8 sacks) are joined by honorable mention LB Isaiah Jones (76 tackles, 15.5 TFL, 7 sacks). In the secondary D’Angelo Ponds is a star who is the No. 5 cornerback on Mel Kiper’s NFL Draft big board – he has 56 tackles and two INTs this year. Plus safety Louis Moore (91 tackles, 6 INTs) was a first-team all-Big 10 pick and fellow safety Amare Ferrell (47 tackles, 4 INTs) was honorable mention. The defense has amassed 18 interceptions and 11 fumble recoveries, so Miami protecting the ball will be paramount.

“They fly around, they’re not going to be in the wrong spot,” Fletcher said. “High-effort guys. I wouldn’t want to play anybody else. This is a great challenge for us. … We are just so excited.”

A final thought?

That’s on what this opportunity means to him.

“It means everything to me, especially a kid who always been balling in South Florida,” Fletcher said. “So to do it at one of the highest levels, it’s a blessing.

“I definitely grew up a Miami fan, from family and my dad, specifically. But in the recruiting game, I was committed to Ohio State for like eight months during that process. But thank God I ended up at Miami going through that process, when it came to that final signing day. It just means everything to me that I’m here now and that I can just execute with Miami. I did see the highs and lows, but I’m just happy to be part of the grind.”