Eye on the U

B-Rad First-Team All-ACC; Football roster making space; McDermott on Rimington Watch List.

Bryan Radziewski was not his usual self during his last regular-season start, but he was amazing all season -- coming off shoulder surgery nonetheless.

The left-handed junior was among five starting pitchers named to the 2013 All-ACC First Team on Monday.

B-Rad, as he is called by his fans and teammates, ended the season ranked among the conference leaders in nearly every statistical category. He ranked third in ERA (1.64), tied for second in wins (eight), tied for second in complete games (two), third in strikeouts (96) and first in batting average against (.175).

Radziewski is one of three pitchers in the ACC averaging more than 10 strikeouts per nine innings (11.27). The former Baseball America Freshman All-American has recorded 204 Ks over 33 starts and has a 19-4 career record and career ERA of 2.64. 

Miami begins its quest for an ACC title at 3 p.m. Thursday, when it meets No. 1 seed North Carolina in a Pool A matchup in Durham, N.C.

UM lost in the title game to Georgia Tech last year.

RICARDO WILLIAMS OFFICIALLY OFF FOOTBALL TEAM

   Chris Yandle, director of communications for UM athletics, just confirmed to me that 6-5, 251-pound defensive end Ricardo Williams is no longer on the team. A redshirt sophomore, Williams is out of Homestead Senior High. Williams played in one game last year -- against North Carolina. 

   Williams' name has already been removed from the football roster.

   Wide receiver Robert Lockhart Jr., who also has been granted his release, according to Canesport.com, is still on the roster.

    "As far as Robert Lockhart, I have not been informed about anything,'' Yandle said.

   Lockhart is a 6-1, 183-pound redshirt sophomore out of Fork Union Military Academy, via West Boca Raton High.  Lockhart was a four-star recruit by Rivals.com and ESPN. As a high school senior he had 34 catches for 686 yards and six touchdowns. He chose UM over Virginia Tech. Lockhart played in two games last season -- UNC and FSU -- but sustained a season-ending knee injury.

 SHANE McDERMOTT ON RIMINGTON WATCH LIST   

     UM center Shane McDermott is one of 44 players named to the 2013 Rimington Trophy spring watch list. The award is presented annually to the nation's top collegiate center.

    McDermott, a junior, missed spring practice after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery.

     An All-ACC honorable mention selection in 2012 by league coaches, McDermott started all 12 games at center for UM. UM had the ACC's third-best passing offense (295.4-yards-per-game average) and fifth-best total offense (440.2). As a redshirt freshman in 2011, he played in 10 games, allowing no sacks and not being flagged for any penalties.

    McDermott is from Lake Worth. He was awarded the Walter Kichefski Endowed Football Scholarship at the most recent UM Sports Hall of Fame induction banquet. He will earn his bachelor's degree this summer.

    McDermott's younger brother (I won't say "little'' brother as he's 6-6 and approaching 300 pounds), Kc McDermott, has already pledged his commitment to UM for the Class of 2014, a huge get for the Canes.
 Kc is a four-star lineman, according to Rivals.com, and is listed as the 40th best player overall, regardless of position. He is listed as the fifth best tackle in the Class of 2014.

   Notre Dame also wanted Kc, and actually still wants him, but Kc said he's not budging from his commitment to the Hurricanes.  

     SUSAN MILLER DEGNAN

Anyone seen Seantrel? He wasn't at practice, necessitating (temporary?) position switch for teammate; And congrats to Cortez!

We all were looking forward to seeing Seantrel Henderson out at practice for Day 2 of fall camp. At least I was looking forward to it, as I requested him for an interview.

But Seantrel was not at camp Saturday morning.

Taking Henderson's place Saturday at right tackle: Jonathan Feliciano, who is listed on the current depth chart as the first-team left guard. Feliciano, if you recall, played tackle during the season but was switched to guard in the spring.

Taking Feliciano's place at left guard: usual backup Jeremy Lewis.

Delayed flight? Coach Al Golden was asked.

Golden: "I have no idea what... again, when I told you guys Friday he'd be  back... I have no idea what his schedule is, but I think he's supposed to arrive back today.''

Golden said Friday that Henderson did not attend practice because he was in Minnesota to attend the funeral of a friend. But he also said he'd be back for Saturday morning's practice session.

This wouldn't be more than a blip on the radar if there weren't a track record here. The 6-8, 340-pound Henderson, a junior, has been the subject of controversy a few times since he arrived at UM in 2010.

    He was the 2009 USA Today High School Offensive Player of the Year, the only lineman to ever win the award.

    He's polite and candid when we talk to him. We just don't hear from him very often.

   Golden suspended Henderson the first weekend of spring practice in early March, 2012, for violating an undisclosed team policy.

   Golden said during our one-on-one interview two weeks ago at the ACC Football Kickoff that Henderson was "absolutely not'' suspended after showing up "significantly late'' to the start of a summer session. "It's not a function of anything else in the summer other than missing class and being accountable to your teammtes and the university,'' the coach told me. He then went on to say that Henderson was "doing great'' despite being punished internally for arriving late.

  Golden reiterated during our interview that Henderson was showing "a sense of accountability on his part that he hasn't displayed or exhibited in the past, and I think it shows maturity and it shows signs of adhering to a process, a discipline. I'm hopeful.

    "We're like everybody else on the planet when it comes to Seantrel,'' Golden said that day. "We want to maximize his ability, we want to maximize his talent and give him the skillset, the discipline, the strength, the explosion to be the type of player we know he can be.''

   Hopefully he'll be back tomorrow. Either way, I received word from UM that he will not be available for interviews until further notice.

   CORTEZ KENNEDY A PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAMER!

   Way to go Cortez! Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.

    He will be officially enshrined at 7 p.m. Saturday (ESPN and NFL Network).

   I remember nearly four years ago when I called Cortez Kennedy to ask him about his reaction to learning he was one of five UM greats selected for the UM Football Ring of Honor.

  "I couldn't believe it,'' Kennedy, a former defensive tackle, said by phone from his Orlando home. "I'm in the Seattle Seahawks' Ring of Honor, and this has even more meaning to me. Just think of all the UM greatness that came before and after me.''

   Kennedy, now 43, was the MVP of the Hurricanes' 1989 national championship team.

   "I respect every player that came through the U, because we sacrificed so much on and off the field,'' he said. "It was hard for me to even tell some of the former players I was selected, because so many of them deserve to be in that ring.''

 Kennedy registered 58 sacks and scored one touchdown on a fumble recovery in his 11-season career with the Seattle Seahawks.  

 I'm sure he'll cherish the moment Saturday, and all Canes Fans will be right there with him.

  SUSAN MILLER DEGNAN