Miami’s Loss Against Florida: Four Things Learned
The debut of Manny Diaz as a head coach began with a loss in the record column. There were several chances for the Miami Hurricanes to upset the eighth-ranked Florida Gators. In the end, though, the Hurricanes fell short. Miami’s loss against Florida had several swings of momentum and plenty of things were learned, both good and bad.
Miami has Another Superstar at Tight End
The Hurricanes have had a long history of producing talented tight ends. After being named to the All-ACC team as a freshman, Brevin Jordan showed up big once again. He led the Hurricanes in receptions, yards and scored the only receiving touchdown. What doesn’t appear on the stat sheet is the blocking assignments that Jordan took on to help the offensive line. Teams will have a hard time trying to remove Jordan from the game plan, as Miami showed a variation of ways to get Jordan the ball.
Offensive Line Problems May Continue
The Hurricanes knew they had their hands full with Florida going into the match up with two freshmen starting at offensive tackle. Even with that, no one could’ve predicted ten sacks. Some of the sacks were due to the ball being held too long, which was singled out by the coaches. Overall though the group looked inexperienced with the number of penalties that were caused to nervousness.
The ACC may not have a more talented tandem of defensive ends like the Florida Gators bolstered but the young tackles will face some good competition. The hope is that the players will continue to progress and should be solid by the time Miami enters ACC play. Diaz has publicly supported the tackles and stated that there will not be any changes, which should help their confidence.
Secondary is Still Strong
The Hurricanes have a traditionally strong secondary but lost a lot of experience. The unit had two players leave via the transfer portal a week before the game. Making matters worse, there was another player in the secondary suspended while another awaits NCAA clearance. The Hurricanes went into the game shorthanded and still gave the Gators fits. Poor tackling and a lack of communication cost the Hurricanes two big plays but overall a good showing. Amari Carter and Romeo Finley both had interceptions in the second half. Trajan Bandy only allowed one catch and played very physical. The surprise of the bunch was Gilbert Frierson, the redshirt freshmen who split time with Finley. He had a tackle for loss and a critical pass breakup to cause a fourth down.
Miami is Extremely Young
The best thing about the Hurricanes this year may also be the worst thing. Watching Miami’s loss against Florida, there were critical moments that youth and the lack of familiarity set the team back. The great thing about that is Miami will start to gel together at some point. Even still, will they be able to win despite growing pains? Jarren Williams at quarterback is only a redshirt freshmen and is dealing with a new system and an offense with only one senior in a major role. The Hurricanes as a team only have 13 seniors and 15 juniors, which means the underclassmen have to play. While this could fare very favorable for Miami in the future, there will be lessons that those young players learn along the way.
