Miami TE Cam McCormick granted ninth year of eligibility - ESPN

Miami tight end Cam McCormick confirmed Thursday that he'd be returning to play for the Hurricanes in 2024 — his ninth season of college football.

McCormick, who began his career at Oregon in 2016, missed significant parts of four different seasons due to injury, which along with his redshirt year and the COVID year of 2020, allowed him to petition the NCAA for an unprecedented ninth season of eligibility.

McCormick announced his return on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday with the tagline «the pursuit of excellence has no goal line,» calling 2024 his «last ride.»

Appreciate all of the support! <a href=«https://twitter.com/hashtag/84Resilient?src=hash&ref_src=» https:>#84Resilient

<a href=«https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoCanes?src=hash&ref_src=» https:>#GoCanes pic.twitter.com/KKYlI2jO8P

«I'm blessed that it was me to go through it because a lot of people would have folded under the pressure — both mentally and physically,» McCormick told ESPN. «But it's pushed me to be a better person and teammate — everything. I've learned so much from every year and everything I've had to overcome.»

McCormick, 25, was originally a three-star prospect out of Bend, Oregon. He was part of the 2016 signing class at Oregon that included QB Justin Herbert, and a national class that included Nick Bosa, Ed Oliver, Rashan Gary and Jalen Hurts — all now established NFL veterans.

McCormick redshirted as a true freshman in 2016 then played in 13 games as a reserve in 2017. Then came a string of injuries — a broken leg in 2018 followed by complications that cost him 2019 and 2020, followed by a foot injury two weeks into the 2021 season. He was granted a sixth year of eligibility in 2019, had another added in 2020 when the NCAA gave an extra season