After months of work, Hurricanes ready to get back on the field. For eight months, they've been killing each other in practice and now finally looking forward to this game and this moment. For the Hurricanes, the preparation for Saturday's opener against Bethune-Cookman at Sun Life Stadium didn't begin last month with the first day of training camp. It didn't start during their summer conditioning workouts or even during several weeks of spring practice earlier this year. The work started long before that when the Hurricanes returned to South Florida last January after a demoralizing 24-21 loss to South Carolina in the Duck Commander Independence Bowl capped a disappointing 6-7 season.It was after that game that Hurricanes coach Al Golden worked 55 straight days in an effort to make the changes he felt were necessary to get Miami's program back on track. And it was after that game when quarterback Brad Kaaya, the ACC Rookie of the Year, vowed to become the leader his team needed. Since then, there have been countless hours of film study. Plenty of grueling workouts both on the field and in the weight room. There have been plenty of team-building opportunities as Miami's players tried to strengthen the bonds they say weren't there during last year's disappointing season.
Now, the Hurricanes – who no longer say much, if anything, about 2014 – will get to see some of the fruits of their labor when they match up against an opponent for the first time this year.
And the expectation is that with all the work they've done, things will be different this time. "We don't want to feel like we did last year. That's why we're working so hard," safety Dallas Crawford said. "Not to keep going back to last year, but we just know we don't want to feel like that." For all of their newfound unity and a renewed work ethic, though, the Hurricanes know Saturday's opener is their first real chance to answer questions about their personnel at several key positions, although the team will be without rush end Al-Quadin Muhammad, who is suspended for the opener after violating an undisclosed team rule.
Kaaya, who threw for 3,198 yards and 26 touchdowns as a freshman last season, is now without three of the starting offensive linemen who protected him. Gone are receiver Phillip Dorsett and tight end Clive Walford, two of his top targets. Running back Duke Johnson, Miami's all-time leading rusher, is gone too after opting to bypass his senior year to enter the NFL Draft. And even earlier this week, Miami's offense took yet another blow when junior running back Gus Edwards, expected to be one of the players to fill the void left by Johnson's departure, was lost for the season after undergoing surgery on his left foot.
The Hurricanes say they feel confident young playmakers like sophomore running backs Joe Yearby and Trayone Gray, along with freshman Mark Walton, can make a difference. And the receivers will get a boost after the return of Rashawn Scott, who missed all of last season with a shoulder and clavicle injury so severe Miami sought a medical redshirt for him. Miami is also hopeful former Northeast High standout Stacy Coley can return to his 2013 form when he earned Freshman All-American honors and accounted for 1,381 total yards.
On the other side of the ball, Golden believes this is the strongest, deepest and most experienced defense [then your goal should be for all the marbles AG] he's had during his tenure at Miami. The unit finished 2014 ranked 14th in the nation after allowing opponents an average of 329.6 yards per game. They'll face a Bethune-Cookman offense that does its best to score quickly. The Wildcats, whose roster features 28 players that hail from South Florida, had 10 scoring drives of just three plays or less in 2014 and in all but three games last year, Bethune had a scoring drive with three plays or less. Two of those game against FBS opponents FIU and UCF.
Still, one of the biggest focuses for Miami on Saturday is learning more about itself, getting young players experience and continuing to move forward after the season that was. "I want us to attack, be consistent … take care of ourselves, play at a high tempo, play fast, and be sharp," Golden said. "One of the things I'm challenging the team with is being consistent, week in and week out, no matter what." ccabrera@tribpub.com
