On Saturday night, the Miami Hurricanes dominated the Clemson Tigers 41-13 in Memorial Stadium. Defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman had the defense flying around all night long, especially the front-seven.
The Hurricanes defense forced more than 20 quarterback pressures, nine tackles for loss and six sacks against the Tigers. The defense was living in the backfield all night long, only allowing 55 yards on the ground across 31 carries.
A big part of Miami's success was due to Missouri transfer edge rusher Damon Wilson. He forced 11 quarterback pressures, three tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks, while playing in 56 snaps. Senior linebacker Chase Smith had arguably his best game as a Miami Hurricane, forcing six tackles and one tackle for loss. Smith also had one of the best plays of the night, stuffing Clemson's running back in the backfield on a crucial fourth and short.
Edge rusher Marquise Lightfoot also contributed with two tackles, one tackle for loss and one sack before going out with an injury. Sophomore defensive lineman Third Scroggins saw an increase in his playing time, participating in 44 plays, while recording two tackles, one tackle for loss, and one sack.
Head coach Mario Cristobal praised the pass rush in his postgame press conference after the victory, stating that the Hurricanes were resilient and relentless all night long.
"I think we were resilient and relentless. I think that our matchups and our continued work at technique and fundamentals and the way we practice showed up. I think GreenTree showed up out here tonight. We really work hard at this stuff and that stuff is starting to show up in the way that we want it to in a humble and quiet, let's get better and just shut our mouths kind of way," said Cristobal.
"I just want to continue to get more physical. We want to be more durable but you can't control that sometimes. But the continued experience gained by our freshmen, due to circumstances, it's going to pay off and it paid off tonight. So many things to be proud of we had a lot of opportunities at the quarterback, and we maybe did not sack him all the time, but we certainly made our presence felt. And I think the more we hit him, the more it affected him."
It was a solid night for the front-seven and showed that the team can work in a tough environment at Death Valley. The defense was constantly bringing pressure and getting into the backfield, forcing Clemson signal-caller Tait Reynolds to get rid of the ball quickly. And with the Hurricanes stuffing the run it just made it tougher on Reynolds.
The Hurricanes will now have a bye-week to get everyone healthy and rested up before they turn their attention to the Florida State Seminoles on October 17th.
The Hurricanes defense forced more than 20 quarterback pressures, nine tackles for loss and six sacks against the Tigers. The defense was living in the backfield all night long, only allowing 55 yards on the ground across 31 carries.
A big part of Miami's success was due to Missouri transfer edge rusher Damon Wilson. He forced 11 quarterback pressures, three tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks, while playing in 56 snaps. Senior linebacker Chase Smith had arguably his best game as a Miami Hurricane, forcing six tackles and one tackle for loss. Smith also had one of the best plays of the night, stuffing Clemson's running back in the backfield on a crucial fourth and short.
Edge rusher Marquise Lightfoot also contributed with two tackles, one tackle for loss and one sack before going out with an injury. Sophomore defensive lineman Third Scroggins saw an increase in his playing time, participating in 44 plays, while recording two tackles, one tackle for loss, and one sack.
Head coach Mario Cristobal praised the pass rush in his postgame press conference after the victory, stating that the Hurricanes were resilient and relentless all night long.
"I think we were resilient and relentless. I think that our matchups and our continued work at technique and fundamentals and the way we practice showed up. I think GreenTree showed up out here tonight. We really work hard at this stuff and that stuff is starting to show up in the way that we want it to in a humble and quiet, let's get better and just shut our mouths kind of way," said Cristobal.
"I just want to continue to get more physical. We want to be more durable but you can't control that sometimes. But the continued experience gained by our freshmen, due to circumstances, it's going to pay off and it paid off tonight. So many things to be proud of we had a lot of opportunities at the quarterback, and we maybe did not sack him all the time, but we certainly made our presence felt. And I think the more we hit him, the more it affected him."
It was a solid night for the front-seven and showed that the team can work in a tough environment at Death Valley. The defense was constantly bringing pressure and getting into the backfield, forcing Clemson signal-caller Tait Reynolds to get rid of the ball quickly. And with the Hurricanes stuffing the run it just made it tougher on Reynolds.
The Hurricanes will now have a bye-week to get everyone healthy and rested up before they turn their attention to the Florida State Seminoles on October 17th.
