Things didn’t go the way Taquan Mizzell wanted during his freshman season at Virginia, but he said the learning experience could be valuable.

The five-star recruit had to battle through a dreaded high ankle sprain early in the season and that kept him out of two games (VMI and Pitt), while limiting his effectiveness in others. As he became healthier late in the season, he started to show flashes of his considerable potential in November. He had the longest reception of his career, a 27-yarder, against Clemson, racked up 142 all-purpose yards at North Carolina, and posted both his first rushing and first receiving touchdowns against Miami.

Mizzell finished with 184 rushing yards and 164 receiving yards. He tallied 695 all-purpose yards.

The Cavaliers have watched the back nicknamed “Smoke” make some more of the elusive style plays this spring, though the basic schemes on display in the Spring Game led to just 28 yards on 9 carries.

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