Hurricanes’ Scott Patchan embodies father with jersey number

Miami defensive end Scott Patchan is entering his redshirt season looking to build on a junior year that saw him on the field for 12 of the team’s 13 games.

In honor of his Hurricane legacy, Patchan changed his jersey number from 19 to 71, which was worn by his father, Matt Patchan, who won two national championships at UM as an offensive tackle from 1983-87.

“It’s a great way to show him how much I appreciate him and respect him and I thank him for everything he’s done for me,” Patchan said. “I figured it’d be a good idea so I went ahead and did it. it was on my heart for a while but I’m glad I did.”

Patchan expects a big year in 2019 but he in fact did not become bigger to in order to reach his goals.

“I leaned out but stayed the same body weight,” Patchan said. “It’s nice because I don’t like carrying bad weight. I like to carry positive weight, a lot of muscle, not much fat.”

He credit his improvements to first year strength and conditioning coach David Feeley, who head coach Manny Diaz brought over from Temple.

“What Scott Patchan does do on a daily basis is he monitors his weight,” Miami strength and conditioning coach David Feeley said, “and he’s not a 225-pound D-end and he’s not a 275-pound D-end. He’s kind of right in the middle. He’s a 250-pound guy and his motor is what makes him the athlete that he is.”

“The guy, first of all, has the most energy in the room every day on any given day of the week,” Patchan said. “He’s gonna push you each and every day. I love it because there’s a lot of name calling, getting you motivated, it’s just a great atmosphere to be in.”

Despite of the strides Patchan made in the weight room, he’s still miniature compared to his old man.

“He was like 300 pounds,” Patchan said. “He was only 6-4 but he’s a lot bigger than me. He was an offensive lineman so he had to be bigger.”

The Hurricanes will need a big game from Patchan if they’re going to upset the No. 8 Florida Gators on Saturday in Orlando.