Mario Cristobal just added a little more fire to the Hurricanes’ backfield, and this time, it’s coming from a North Dakota freight train built for the grind of Power Four football. With Carson Beck waiting to be unleashed, Cristobal is collecting talent like Pokeballs on a hot streak. Miami’s latest portal move is one that forces a recalibration of how opposing ACC defenses will gameplan. The Canes are not just stacking speed or flair anymore—they’re stacking violence, grit, and muscle. And one of the four weapons at Beck’s disposal next fall may end up being the most bruising.

The new arrival? CharMar Brown. His name might not ring out nationally yet, but insiders are already buzzing. A product of Omaha, Nebraska, Brown played just one season at North Dakota State but lit it up in a way that demanded Cristobal’s attention. Over 1,000 yards, 15 touchdowns, and most notably, the Jerry Rice Award, which goes to the best freshman in the FCS. He led the Bison’s rushing attack en route to a national championship and now steps into Coral Gables with three years of eligibility and a chip the size of Memorial Stadium on his shoulder.

On The Ruffino & Joe Show, the reaction was instant and electric. “This is a super underrated pickup, man. I love this,” said Joe DeLeone. “CharMar Brown’s not going to take over the primary carries. Like, we’re all smart enough to know this—that Miami has a pretty quality running back room. Fletcher has shown some signs of what he can capably be in this running back room. There has been good recruiting at that position.” And he’s right—Mark Fletcher and Jordan Lyle held the top spots coming out of spring. But that depth chart could be on shaky ground come August.

The show didn’t hold back on praise for Brown’s physical style, either. “But Brown this past year for North Dakota State, Blake, was a rising star,” DeLeone continued. “He won the Jerry Rice Award, which was the award for the top FCS freshman in the country. He had 15 rushing touchdowns. And when you flip on the tape, you see a hard-a– runner. And I think that that has worked well since Shannon Dawson took over as the offensive coordinator—having these physical, compact, muscly running backs that are just going to run through the line of scrimmage.”

DeLeone then talked about one of the clips of Brown – “he’s just running four or five dudes over, carrying the pile, and then he breaks away and then he gets caught from behind because he’s kind of slow. This is not going to be a guy that is going to rush for 1,500 yards at the P4 level. He is going to be a guy that could end up having like seven, eight touchdowns at the end of the year because you bring him in goal-line situations and he runs through some mfer’s face. I just like his mentality.”

“Marty” wasn’t exactly a recruiting darling coming out of high school. Rated as a three-star prospect, he ranked No. 147 among running backs in the 2023 class and just the 13th-best player in the state of Nebraska. That didn’t stop him from becoming the first NDSU running back in seven years to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark. He also joined an elite group in Missouri Valley Football Conference history, becoming just the sixth player to win both Freshman of the Year and Newcomer of the Year in the same season.

His 16-game stat line is impressive: 1,181 rushing yards and 15 scores, leading all FCS freshmen. Now, he’ll enter a Miami backfield that isn’t desperate, but definitely interested. Fletcher and Lyle have looked the part, but Brown’s addition changes the dynamics instantly. His tape shows a runner who thrives in contact, who doesn’t shy from collision, and who lives to punish tacklers. “Guys like this thrive in college football,” DeLeone summed it up perfectly. “And he’s going to thrive in the ACC because there’s going to be plenty of defenses that don’t have defensive lines that can slow him down.”

Mario Cristobal’s backfield will be booming

Coach Mario Cristobal isn’t messing around—Miami is loading up in a big way, and QB1 Beck is going to have a whole new arsenal at his disposal this fall. The biggest splash sure was CharMar Brown, but he’s not walking into an empty room.

He joins a stacked backfield that includes former four-star studs Mark Fletcher, Jordan Lyle, and Girard Pringle, plus the underrated speedster Chris Wheatley-Humphrey. In other words, good luck figuring out who’s getting the rock—this group is deep, talented, and ready to roll.

But the Hurricanes didn’t stop there. They’ve also added some serious juice at receiver and elsewhere via the transfer portal. Cincinnati WR transfer Tony Johnson and BYU speedster Keelon Marion are expected to bring big-play potential. On the defensive side, NC State linebacker Kamal Bonner adds grit and experience, while Texas kicker Bert Auburn will look to bring consistency to special teams.

As Miami looks to replace a chunk of its 2024 offensive firepower, the new-look roster is shaping up to be trouble. In the best possible way.