The last few weeks, freshman running back Girard Pringle Jr. has needed to dart back and forth across the practice field so he could reach the spot where he was needed. During some plays, he was working with the scout team. Other times, he was working with the second-team offense.

The combination of Pringle’s production in limited time against Syracuse and his work in practice earned him his first career start, and he rewarded the coaching staff’s faith with a 100-yard performance in a win over N.C. State.

“Just another example of if you work your tail off and you perform when your number is called, you’ll be rewarded with reps,” UM coach Mario Cristobal said.

Pringle said he learned he would get the start a few days in advance, and he was not rattled by the opportunity.

“The confidence was always there,” Pringle said. “I’ve got a great team around me. So once I just got a chance, I took it.”

Pringle finished the game with 116 yards on 17 carries. He also had two catches for 32 yards. Pro Football Focus gave him a 79.1 offensive grade with an 80.2 rushing grade in the victory.

“He’s got some juice,” offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson said.

Pringle has been relatively low on the depth chart for much of the season, getting snaps late in wins after starter Mark Fletcher Jr. and players like Marty Brown and Jordan Lyle got the majority of carries early in games.

Pringle had produced in those late-game situations, too, scoring touchdowns in his first four career games. Ironically, the only game he has played where he has not scored a touchdown was against N.C. State — the game he started and played a career-high number of snaps.

With Fletcher out with an injury and Pringle being the hot hand, the freshman got a big chance.

“I have a lot of faith in all those guys,” Cristobal said. “I think we have great backs. But you pride yourself on saying, ‘Hey, you’ve got to show it and if you do, then you’re going to gain opportunity.’

“With what he did last week, it wouldn’t be professional not to give him an opportunity to go out there and see what he could do.”

Pringle has gotten support from his fellow running backs. The freshman said he has not been surprised by the encouragement the older players have given him throughout the year, saying he got to know the other running backs when he was still in high school and committed to Miami.

“It’s a brotherhood,” Pringle said. “We’re just a big family, the whole team. There’s no selfishness in the room. It’s all love.”

Pringle has been among the nation’s top freshman running backs. Among freshmen with 25 or more carries, he has the eighth-highest rushing grade (80.6) out of the 34 qualifying running backs. He also provides the Hurricanes with an outside run threat. Twenty-two of Pringle’s 34 carries have been outside the tackles, and he is averaging a team-best 6.86 yards on those carries.

Although Fletcher is close to returning from his injury, Pringle has proven he can be an option to provide a spark in Miami’s running game.

“He looked like a mature player out there,” Cristobal said. “The extra yards, the make-you-miss opportunities, really patient to the hole, but explosive through the hole. Yards after contact, ball security. Certainly, the check down … Just a lot of stuff. Really played well and is only going to get better.”

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2025/11/18/hurricanes-pringle-standout/