Aside from being excited that there is FINALLY A
HURRICANE DANNY, I have spent the past week thinking about one thing and one thing only: The 'Canes.The Miami Hurricanes will begin the first season of the Post- Stein era one week from today, so it is naturally time to take a look at this season's expectations (before Randy Shannon even breaks fall camp).
This season should be the next step towards National Championship contention, perhaps as early as next season. However, the next logical step is a birth in the ACC Championship Game, which would give Miami its best shot at a BCS pay day this season.
It has been well documented that the key to the season will be the first four games, and it is a true sentiment.
This team will get better as the season goes, as the youngsters become veterans. It is of note that this team's depth chart is potentially just as young as last season's, which is a little disconcerting.
It would be nice for Miami to be able to play a tune-up game against someone from the MAC or Sun Belt, or even a team like UCF, to start the season before hosting Oklahoma, and then playing an ACC schedule, featuring spread out games against Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech and Florida State, the three conference biggies.
However, when you do not win you do not often get the benefit of the draw, and Miami has not won lately.
I think it is reasonable to expect a 2-2 record after the first 4 games, and 2-2 should be enough to springboard the 'Canes to a big finish. Keep in mind that the 'Canes still have a very young offense under a new offensive coordinator and a defense that has a lot to prove, and 2-2 against FSU, VTech, GTech and Oklahoma is pretty damned good.
The two teams that Miami has the best shot against are FSU and VTech. FSU is on the road, but it is a rivalry game, so none of that matters. Furthermore, Kirby Freeman won the game the last time Miami traveled to FSU, so I would throw homefield advantage right out the window. FSU will have their typical attacking defense, and they will probably be making a concerted effort to put Jacory Harris out of the game, given Miamis lack of depth at quarterback. It will be a sloppy, poorly exectued game, as it always is when these two teams face off in the first game (still one of the dumbest scheduling decisions in football). My expectation is that it will be a battle of attrition until the fourth quarter, when the offenses begin to open it up. At that point, I have to take Jacory over Christian Ponder, who had a field day against the 'Canes last year mostly thanks to a fault in our defense in which the outside linebacker received no help from the defensive end in containing the option, leaving the linebacker in what was essentially a 2-on-1 fast break.
Virginia Tech is overrated as usual coming in to the season, and Miami does not fear Blacksburg. I expect a game similar to last season's, with scores getting in to the low-20's at best. That is the type of game this Miami team is built to win, because it will not win a slugfest per se and it will probably not have the ammo to keep up in a shootout this early in the season.
If Miami can get to 2-2, then they will be running downhill into the softER half of the schedule, where every game should be won with the possible exception of North Carolina, another overrated team (they really should not come out with the first poll until Week 6, but I guess they have to sell magazines). That is not to say that Miami will win every one of these games, as teams like Clemson and Wake Forest are always dangerous, but they should.
With that in mind, here are some Pre-Season Superlatives:
Best Player: Sean Spence
Last season, Spence shot up the depth chart early and provided the first consistent linebacker play since the days of Beason. He will only get better this season with a better line in front of him and added weight.
Most Important Player: Jason Fox
Fox has got to keep defenders off of Jacory's blindside. If Harris stays healthy, this team has a very solid shot at a BCS bowl. If he doesn't, it will struggle to make the Eagle Bank Bowl.
Breakout Player: LaRon Byrd
Byrd seems to have become the Go-To Receiver in the offense, and if the offense is as good as it is being made out to be, than that will mean big production.
Surprise Player: Kendall Thompkins
From the sound of things, Thompkins has catapaulted over Thearon Collier and possibly Travis Benjamin to become the team's best "Smurf" receiver. This after howls of outrage amongst fans just over a year ago, when the 'Canes accepted a commitment from the underhyped Thompkins (Dan Stein has a king memory, folks).
Key Injury: Adewale Ojomo/Eric Moncur
These are probably the two best defensive ends on the roster, and Miami could be without both for long periods of time. Their absence will be most notable against Georgia Tech's option attack, which is geared toward exploiting inexpereinced defensive ends.
Key Game: Florida State
It is a HUGE game in terms of momentum for this younfg team, not to mention I hate Florida State.
Potential Trap Games: @ Wake, Clemson, @USF
Really any non-marquee game qualifies here for the young 'Canes, but these three are dangerous teams who would love to run all over the 'Canes.
That's it for the Pre-Season preview. I could go on and on, but these previews usually end up on the wrong side of overkill for a team that we will know nothing about until they step on the field.
Here come the 'Canes.
Always guard the inbound passer.
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