So game 1 is in the books. The Miami Hurricanes took care of business in methodical fashion by defeating Miami of Ohio by the score of 38-3 in a game that they dominated physically from start to finish at Hard Rock Stadium. The tone was set early as the 'Canes scored on their first drive on a 44-yard screen that Colbie Young housed. From there, the game really didn't ever seem in doubt.
There were some typical first game miscues, but for the most part, Miami took care of a MAC team in the fashion you would expect. Yeah, you could say that they were supposed to do this, but it did look a bit different. They didn't just win, they actually manhandled the RedHawks throughout.
Short of having Ben Roethlisberger back, they weren't going to threaten Miami.
You could say this was a perfect sparring session before a real fight next week against Texas A&M. Some thoughts on this game...
- While Shannon Dawson brings an 'Air Raid' background with him, it's clear that with this Oline that Miami will be a physical team that will run the ball downhill. At times the run game very Lashlee-esque as they jammed the ball inside, but you also saw plays where Matt Lee and Anez Cooper pulled and sprung big runs.
There's no doubt that Miami will be stout upfront, and with that should be able to create favorable down and distance situations for Tyler Van Dyke. Yeah, it's early and it's just Miami of Ohio, but this could be the best Oline seen at Miami since 2014 (a unit that included the likes of Jon Feliciano, Danny Isidora and Ereck Flowers -- all of whom had NFL careers ahead of them). Even guys like Matt McCoy (who was wearing #81) who didn't start, will see some meaningful snaps it looks like.
- Speaking of the running game, maybe it's hyperbolic to call them “the Four Horseman of Coral Gables” but the quartet of Henry Parrish, Mark Fletcher, Ajay Allen and Don Chaney was highly productive in the opener, and they bring a variety of running styles. The first three on that list had nine carries, while Chaney had eight. All of them had at runs of over 15 yards to their credit.
- The throw game was rather vanilla for the most part, as there was an abundance of screens to the wideouts. Van Dyke was OK, as he was 17-22, 201 yards with a touchdown and an INT. It's safe to assume that Dawson played it close to the vest as Miami just consistently churned out yards and didn't do much to challenge the Redhawks vertically. But at times Van Dyke did seem to lack some zip on his throws. (Maybe he has some sort of injuries, but I don't want to start any blasphemous rumors). You wonder what will happen against teams that will present tighter throwing windowns.
In the late stages, Emory Williams showed he might be the quarterback of the future. Lets just leave it at that.
- Defensively Miami was solid, and young players like Rueben Bain flashed, as did transfer K.J. Cloyd, whose speed has cemented a place in the linebacking rotation. Lance Guidry's unit gave up just 215 yards, and it's clear that there is a clear emphasis on pursuit and surrounding the ball. It was a promising start for this unit.
- It didn't seem like Miami had any real injuries. After coming out of the game early on, Young came back in and caught a pass in the third quarter. Getting injury information out of most programs nowadays is more difficult that finding out the formula for Coca-Cola, but it looks like the 'Canes came out of this contest relatively unscathed.
They won handily, and came out clean. Honestly, you couldn't have asked for much more.
- Moving forward, you could say that the first “real” game of the 2023 season takes place next Saturday. And this is one of those afternoons where the Miami faithful have to show up and truly make a difference. Just as they did in back-to-back weeks in 2017 against Virginia Tech and Notre Dame where the Hard Rock became a true home field advantage for UM. I know some dispute things such as emotion and momentum, well, I disagree, this game is still played by human beings who can be swayed by such things.
Miami gets a bad rap as a fan-base. Perhaps some of it is deserved, but to be fair, there are many more entertainment options here than in say, Tuscaloosa, or Happy Valley. But it's shown in the past that when they do show up en masse, they absolutely make a difference.
This needs to be one of those days.
There were some typical first game miscues, but for the most part, Miami took care of a MAC team in the fashion you would expect. Yeah, you could say that they were supposed to do this, but it did look a bit different. They didn't just win, they actually manhandled the RedHawks throughout.
Short of having Ben Roethlisberger back, they weren't going to threaten Miami.
You could say this was a perfect sparring session before a real fight next week against Texas A&M. Some thoughts on this game...
- While Shannon Dawson brings an 'Air Raid' background with him, it's clear that with this Oline that Miami will be a physical team that will run the ball downhill. At times the run game very Lashlee-esque as they jammed the ball inside, but you also saw plays where Matt Lee and Anez Cooper pulled and sprung big runs.
There's no doubt that Miami will be stout upfront, and with that should be able to create favorable down and distance situations for Tyler Van Dyke. Yeah, it's early and it's just Miami of Ohio, but this could be the best Oline seen at Miami since 2014 (a unit that included the likes of Jon Feliciano, Danny Isidora and Ereck Flowers -- all of whom had NFL careers ahead of them). Even guys like Matt McCoy (who was wearing #81) who didn't start, will see some meaningful snaps it looks like.
- Speaking of the running game, maybe it's hyperbolic to call them “the Four Horseman of Coral Gables” but the quartet of Henry Parrish, Mark Fletcher, Ajay Allen and Don Chaney was highly productive in the opener, and they bring a variety of running styles. The first three on that list had nine carries, while Chaney had eight. All of them had at runs of over 15 yards to their credit.
- The throw game was rather vanilla for the most part, as there was an abundance of screens to the wideouts. Van Dyke was OK, as he was 17-22, 201 yards with a touchdown and an INT. It's safe to assume that Dawson played it close to the vest as Miami just consistently churned out yards and didn't do much to challenge the Redhawks vertically. But at times Van Dyke did seem to lack some zip on his throws. (Maybe he has some sort of injuries, but I don't want to start any blasphemous rumors). You wonder what will happen against teams that will present tighter throwing windowns.
In the late stages, Emory Williams showed he might be the quarterback of the future. Lets just leave it at that.
- Defensively Miami was solid, and young players like Rueben Bain flashed, as did transfer K.J. Cloyd, whose speed has cemented a place in the linebacking rotation. Lance Guidry's unit gave up just 215 yards, and it's clear that there is a clear emphasis on pursuit and surrounding the ball. It was a promising start for this unit.
- It didn't seem like Miami had any real injuries. After coming out of the game early on, Young came back in and caught a pass in the third quarter. Getting injury information out of most programs nowadays is more difficult that finding out the formula for Coca-Cola, but it looks like the 'Canes came out of this contest relatively unscathed.
They won handily, and came out clean. Honestly, you couldn't have asked for much more.
- Moving forward, you could say that the first “real” game of the 2023 season takes place next Saturday. And this is one of those afternoons where the Miami faithful have to show up and truly make a difference. Just as they did in back-to-back weeks in 2017 against Virginia Tech and Notre Dame where the Hard Rock became a true home field advantage for UM. I know some dispute things such as emotion and momentum, well, I disagree, this game is still played by human beings who can be swayed by such things.
Miami gets a bad rap as a fan-base. Perhaps some of it is deserved, but to be fair, there are many more entertainment options here than in say, Tuscaloosa, or Happy Valley. But it's shown in the past that when they do show up en masse, they absolutely make a difference.
This needs to be one of those days.
