The ‘Gotham Bros.’ on the DL, physical transformations and more notes on Miami’s freshmen

Rueben Bain Jr. and Jayden Wayne still haven’t played a game yet as Miami Hurricanes, but it hasn’t stopped fans from getting excited about the long-term potential of the two former elite recruits. They’ve already been hearing a nickname, too.

“I saw something on Twitter calling us the ‘Gotham Brothers,’” Bain said with a laugh. “Me and him cringed at it.”

Really, he was just speaking for himself.

“I like it,” Wayne said, smiling. “’Gotham Boys.’”

The potential nickname — a reference to Batman specifically “The Dark Knight Rises,” with Wayne as Bruce Wayne, Batman’s alter ego, and Bain as supervillain Bane — could be a hit as soon as this year. The defensive linemen are two of the freshmen most likely to get on the field for Miami this year, and already drawing rave reviews from coaches and teammates alike. Behind defensive linemen Akheem Mesidor and Jahfari Harvey, the Hurricanes don’t have any defensive ends with significant starting experience, so Bain and Wayne will compete with fellow defensive linemen Nyjalik Kelly, Chantz Williams, Cyrus Moss and more.

“It’s not so different from high school,” Bain said. “It’s just the play-calling and the little technique stuff you’ve got to listen to.”

If he’s right, Bain should be in good position to play.

The 6-foot-3 lineman was the No. 63 overall prospect in the 247Sports composite rankings for the Class of 2023 and had 77 sacks while winning four state championships in four years at Miami Central. Wayne, 6-6 and 245 pounds, didn’t have the same eye-popping level of production at Bradenton IMG Academy, but was also a top-100 player in the 2023 recruiting class.

Last year, Wayne saw firsthand the type of havoc Bain can reach. Central played IMG Academy in both teams’ opener last season, and Bain had three sacks to lead the Rockets to a stunning upset in Bradenton.

“It’s fun to be on the same line as him,” Wayne said.

Miami Hurricanes’ Bain ‘family affair’

Bain’s favorite part of staying home to play at Miami so far, he said, is when he comes off the field at practice each day and sees his mother watching him.

Lachande Thompson has been at every one of the Hurricanes’ spring practices, Bain said, and his father has also been around for some practices, too.

It’s only part of the Bain “family affair,” as Bain put it. Reginald Bain, the freshman’s older brother, is a graduate assistant working with Miami’s offensive linemen and his brother is taking advantage, often working together as player and coach for extra drills after practice.

“It’s one of the best feelings in the world,” Bain said of the family connections in Coral Gables.

How Miami’s freshmen are bonding

After practice Tuesday, Bain and just about every member of the Hurricanes’ freshmen class had to shift quickly into school mode. They mostly all take an intro-to-college class together and were giving student-led presentations to the rest of the class Tuesday.

Bain, for example, was partnered with safety Kaleb Spencer to give a presentation about double standards in women’s sports, a topic they chose.

“It’s been great,” Bain said. “We’ve all got one class in the next hour, and we all joke and laugh the whole class period. I feel like doing that is good team bonding, class bonding.”

Physical changes from Miami’s freshmen

Although he’s listed at 255 pounds on Miami’s roster, Bain is actually at about 270 right now, he said, and his goal is to get down to about 265 by the fall, hoping a return to his playing weight from high school will let him get a little bit faster.

Once the spring wraps up with the spring game Friday, the freshmen will be right back in the weight room, trying to reshape their bodies for the start of the season.

“I just want to get bigger, you know?” said Riley Williams, giggling as he looked at his skinnier-than-he’d-like left arm. “That’s the main thing for me is just getting stronger.”

Fellow tight end Jackson Carver has already gained 10 pounds since getting to campus in January, and is striving for even more in the spring and summer.

“Eat, train, learn as much as I can,” he said. “I don’t want to set any goals because I want to go beyond that. I just want to do as much as I can and lift my most potential.”