By Dave Holcomb
SouthernPigskin.com

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Harvey didnt receive much playing time this season and recorded only one tackle, but he has the pedigree to be Miamis next great defensive end.

Bowl season is still referred to as the x9cpostseasonx9d of college football, but in some ways, its actually more like the preseason to next year. That will be true for the Miami Hurricanes at defensive end.

Both redshirt senior Trevon Hill and junior Jonathan Garvin, have elected to forego playing against LA Tech in the Independence Bowl on Dec. 26. That will leave a starting defensive end spot open opposite redshirt freshman Gregory Rousseau, who became Miamis second ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year this season.

More than likely, freshman Jahfari Harvey will be the defensive end filling in without Hill and Garvin. If so, the Independence Bowl will be an excellent opportunity for Harvey to prove what he can do.

Harvey didnt receive much playing time this season and recorded only one tackle, but he has the pedigree to be Miamis next great defensive end. He arrived at Miami as a 4-star prospect and the No. 12 ranked weak-side defensive end in the country last recruiting cycle. Harvey was also a Top 40 player in Florida and Top 220 player nationally according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

While he hasnt necessarily showcased that talent in games yet, he has at practice.

x9cJahfari (Harvey) has been a problem in practice to block,x9d Hurricanes head coach Manny Diaz said according to The Sun Sentinel. x9cSo, Im excited to see a guy like him get out there and play because hes got a chance to really factor in for us at defensive end next year.x9d

Rousseau will return next season, and freshman Cameron Williams, who sat out this season because of academic reasons, will be back too. The Hurricanes will add transfer Jaelan Phillips to the mix at defensive end as well in 2020.

With that in mind, theres no guarantee that Harvey will see additional playing time next fall, but the Independence Bowl will be his first chance to prove he deserves more snaps in 2020. Of course, hell need to prove that again in the spring; one bowl performance wont swing the pendulum too much. But again, he has the position to himself for Miamis final game of the season. That should give him ample opportunity to leave a positive impression.

Really, Harvey has the next two weeks to make the Hurricanes coaching staff excited for his potential next season.

For football programs such as Miami, bowl season is taken for granted because theres an expectation that the team will be there every year. The Hurricanes havent failed to reach bowl eligibility since 2012.

After starting 0-2, though, and considering Miami lost to Florida International, the Hurricanes were fortunate to win six games this season. The defeat to FIU coupled with a loss against Duke at the end of November gave Miami a bitter two-game losing streak to end the season, and the team won fewer than seven games for the first time since 2014.

One can debate whether or not the Hurricanes are actually closer to the ACC Coastal crown than they were a year ago when they parted ways with Mark Richt, but the important thing is Miami does get to participate in bowl season. Earning a bowl bid means bowl practices, giving players such as Harvey an opportunity at additional playing time with seniors electing to sit.

Its the postseason and yet the preseason all in one. Nothing exemplifies that fact better than Diaz calling his first bowl game as a head coach a x9cbridge to 2020.x9d This season isnt finished, but the Hurricanes are looking at the future with its defensive ends in the Independence Bowl.