k9cane
Senior
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2011
- Messages
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So I'm back home in Los Angeles (and Happy New Year to everyone) after spending the last couple of days in Dallas/Arlington to see the Miami Hurricanes advance to the semi-finals of the College Football Playoff as they defeated THE Ohio State Buckeyes by the score of 24-14 at AT@T Stadium, which still has the new stadium smell.
I was part of a group that made a pact that said as long as the #canes continue on, we'll be there. Well, off to Scottsdale, Arizona we go. But some quick thoughts on last night's game...
- I hear a lot of people talking about how this exorcised the demons of the 2003 Fiesta Bowl -- a game that I attended -- but I don't look at it quite like that. To me, this is really about Miami re-establishing itself as a real football proGRUM and further proof of concept for Mario Cristobal's vision for the program. In year four, he has Miami in the football final four. UM is now back to being a respected team nationally.
- Carson Becks stat line may look pedestrian(he threw for under 150 yards) but I thought he managed that game brilliantly. He stayed turnover free (unlike Julian Sayin) and he made accurate passes all night. He understood that throwing windows would be relatively tight and close quickly, but he delivered some really accurate throws that kept drives moving
Again, this was another game where every yard and first down mattered. Ohio State has multiple NFL guys on every level of that defense. And he got his Randall Cunningham on as he used his legs/feet to get key yards that moved the chains. He wasn't afraid to put his body in harms way. There are lies, **** lies... and statistics. Don't let the numbers deceive you, Beck played exactly the way Miami needed him to
- As for Ohio State, I don't think Miami will play a more talented squad the remainder of this tournament (but that alone doesn't guarantee victories), they have a Heisman Trophy finalist at QB, the best overall player in the country in Jeremiah Smith and just about every room has a couple of guys who will earn a living playing football after they leave Columbus
- anyone get Trajan Bandy vs Notre Dame in 2017 vibes on his pick-six? 'Agent Zero' has incredible. His ability to play inside the box, while still being a playmaking ballhawk, it's almost like he's a 12th defender at times. In a game that you figure to be low-scoring and a one-possesion game, plays like this are huge.
- I cant lie, at 17-14, Buckeyes convert at 3rd and 15, who else had that sinking feeling that this was going in the wrong direction? But once again, Heatherman's **** Raisers shut the door and set up the game-clinching drive
- Can we give credit to Shannon Dawson? The prevailing thought was he was over-matched by the football acumen of Matt Patricia. He called a very solid game, with some nice wrinkles and didn't over-think it/
- Much is made of Cristoabl and his game management. My personal view is that I wish he'd play at a quicker tempo at times offensively, but as you get deep into the playoffs, you may not get into that many shootouts and you have to find ways to keep guys like Bain and Mesidor fresh. So grinding the clock in this circumstance at this time of the season isn't the worst thing. Last thing Miami had the ball for 33 plus minutes.
Miami played very good situational football last night (which included the kicking/punting game). Cristobal was very good last night.
- Marty 'Mar' Brown is one of my personal favorites on this team. It's been mystifying at times why he hasn't played more (but to be fair, Mark Fletcher is rolling right now), but this guy came cold off the bench to catch a key third down pass which was a tough grab (Beck had to actually back shoulder that thing a bit). Then he ripped off a big run, and then the TD
There's a lot of teams that Brown would play a bigger role, but he's made some key plays for Miami this season (go back to that one-handed grab vs Florida that he took for 16 yards when the game was 13-6 in the fourth quarter that re-energized the offense that drive) and he has just willingly played his role.
- Much is made over Miami's attendance, and yeah, some of it his valid. But inside the stadium, I'm not saying it was 50-50 in terms of support last night, but they were certainly more than a few thousand Hurricane faithful at 'Jerry's World' on Wednesday night and we were loud. Canes Nation showed up -- and I get the sense they will continue to for as long as this ride lasts. The momentum is only building with this
- Finally, huge win for Miami and Cristoabal. But the job isn't done. In fact, they are only halfway home. At that point, they would be 'back'. This is a team built to win now
I was part of a group that made a pact that said as long as the #canes continue on, we'll be there. Well, off to Scottsdale, Arizona we go. But some quick thoughts on last night's game...
- I hear a lot of people talking about how this exorcised the demons of the 2003 Fiesta Bowl -- a game that I attended -- but I don't look at it quite like that. To me, this is really about Miami re-establishing itself as a real football proGRUM and further proof of concept for Mario Cristobal's vision for the program. In year four, he has Miami in the football final four. UM is now back to being a respected team nationally.
- Carson Becks stat line may look pedestrian(he threw for under 150 yards) but I thought he managed that game brilliantly. He stayed turnover free (unlike Julian Sayin) and he made accurate passes all night. He understood that throwing windows would be relatively tight and close quickly, but he delivered some really accurate throws that kept drives moving
Again, this was another game where every yard and first down mattered. Ohio State has multiple NFL guys on every level of that defense. And he got his Randall Cunningham on as he used his legs/feet to get key yards that moved the chains. He wasn't afraid to put his body in harms way. There are lies, **** lies... and statistics. Don't let the numbers deceive you, Beck played exactly the way Miami needed him to
- As for Ohio State, I don't think Miami will play a more talented squad the remainder of this tournament (but that alone doesn't guarantee victories), they have a Heisman Trophy finalist at QB, the best overall player in the country in Jeremiah Smith and just about every room has a couple of guys who will earn a living playing football after they leave Columbus
- anyone get Trajan Bandy vs Notre Dame in 2017 vibes on his pick-six? 'Agent Zero' has incredible. His ability to play inside the box, while still being a playmaking ballhawk, it's almost like he's a 12th defender at times. In a game that you figure to be low-scoring and a one-possesion game, plays like this are huge.
- I cant lie, at 17-14, Buckeyes convert at 3rd and 15, who else had that sinking feeling that this was going in the wrong direction? But once again, Heatherman's **** Raisers shut the door and set up the game-clinching drive
- Can we give credit to Shannon Dawson? The prevailing thought was he was over-matched by the football acumen of Matt Patricia. He called a very solid game, with some nice wrinkles and didn't over-think it/
- Much is made of Cristoabl and his game management. My personal view is that I wish he'd play at a quicker tempo at times offensively, but as you get deep into the playoffs, you may not get into that many shootouts and you have to find ways to keep guys like Bain and Mesidor fresh. So grinding the clock in this circumstance at this time of the season isn't the worst thing. Last thing Miami had the ball for 33 plus minutes.
Miami played very good situational football last night (which included the kicking/punting game). Cristobal was very good last night.
- Marty 'Mar' Brown is one of my personal favorites on this team. It's been mystifying at times why he hasn't played more (but to be fair, Mark Fletcher is rolling right now), but this guy came cold off the bench to catch a key third down pass which was a tough grab (Beck had to actually back shoulder that thing a bit). Then he ripped off a big run, and then the TD
There's a lot of teams that Brown would play a bigger role, but he's made some key plays for Miami this season (go back to that one-handed grab vs Florida that he took for 16 yards when the game was 13-6 in the fourth quarter that re-energized the offense that drive) and he has just willingly played his role.
- Much is made over Miami's attendance, and yeah, some of it his valid. But inside the stadium, I'm not saying it was 50-50 in terms of support last night, but they were certainly more than a few thousand Hurricane faithful at 'Jerry's World' on Wednesday night and we were loud. Canes Nation showed up -- and I get the sense they will continue to for as long as this ride lasts. The momentum is only building with this
- Finally, huge win for Miami and Cristoabal. But the job isn't done. In fact, they are only halfway home. At that point, they would be 'back'. This is a team built to win now
