Fox moving up Miami's starts list

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) - Bumps and bruises, scrapes and sprains, Jason Fox has dealt with that and more since he began playing at Miami.

Just part of the deal for offensive linemen, he says.

But Fox's legacy with the Hurricanes will be that the aches and pains hardly ever slowed him down. If the 6-foot-7, 314-pound left tackle starts for No. 19 Miami (8-3) as expected Saturday against South Florida (7-3), it'll be the 48th time he's opened a game in his career -- tying Ed Reed for second-most in Hurricanes history and trailing only William Joseph's 50-start mark from 1999-2002.

"It's insane," Miami center A.J. Trump said. "I started playing my redshirt freshman year and was out for the year like four plays later. So I've got a whole lot of respect for what he's done. It takes a lot of toughness, a lot of heart, a lot of times in the training room and a little bit of luck. He's been fortunate. He's worked hard."

Fox has missed only two games in his career. He didn't play against Boston College in 2006 because of an elbow injury and sat out last season's game against Virginia Tech with a sprained ankle, even after lobbying coaches to let him try.

Otherwise, 47 appearances, 47 starts.

"It's something I'll take to heart," Fox said. "I'm just glad that I've been able to stay healthy. That's a lot of games and for someone to stay healthy for that long and not blow out a shoulder or a knee or something like that, I definitely have someone looking out for me and I'm really thankful for that. This university and this football program have given me so much, I'm glad I got to contribute back."

And how many of those 47 games and counting should he have missed because of injury?

"Probably a great deal," Fox acknowledged.

The native of Fort Worth, Texas originally caught Miami's eye as a high school tight end, and just never stopped growing. He started his first collegiate game against Florida State at right tackle, was shifted to left tackle -- the marquee position on the offensive line -- by the third game that season, and has never looked back.

Once the game starts, he hardly ever comes out either.

Miami has run 757 offensive plays this season, and Fox has been on the field for 723 of them.

"That shows you how much durability that he's had," Miami coach Randy Shannon said. "Plus, he's a guy who came in at 260 his freshman year, then was starting right away and been starting ever since at left tackle, which everybody knows is a tough position to play. That's a tribute to how hard he works in the offseason and his mentality."

The next level is apparently taking notice.

One NFL draft projection site lists Fox as the fourth-best offensive lineman available in the 2010 class, and other mock draft boards say Fox will likely get taken in either the second or third round.

"He understands that he's going to be nicked, he's going to be sore," Shannon said. "But he chose to be an offensive lineman. Size, skill, all of that is part of it. Here's all you need at offensive lineman: A tough, smart kid who's very competitive. He has that and everything else, it's a bonus."

Getting his name in Miami's record book, it'll have to serve as a consolation prize to Fox.

He came in like every other highly touted recruit, fully expecting to leave with a national championship ring. It won't happen, but if Miami beats South Florida and wins its bowl game, Fox will be the anchor of the first 10-win Hurricane team since 2003.

"I didn't reach my goals here," Fox said. "I didn't get it done. But that being said, there's still so many other things that I accomplished and this team has accomplished since I've been here. We've made a lot of improvement, especially this year. This senior class has definitely laid a foundation for the next few years to come, and I'm proud to be part of that."

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

APTV 11-24-09 1834EST