Miami Hurricanes 

2013 Record: 9-4 (5-3 ACC)

OFFENSE

Scheme:  When James Coley was lured from FSU to return to his hometown, many wondered what kind of offense the Hurricanes would run. After all, head coach Al Golden favored a more pro-style offense and while Coley was certainly schooled in the pro-style under Jimbo Fisher, in his days as the OC at FIU, Coley favored a high-tempo, spread attack. It seems as if Golden won out…or Coley shifted his style. Regardless, the Hurricanes were a run-oriented team, but also threw the ball downfield aggressively off play-action. At times, it was a thing of beauty. But against the four best defenses the Canes faced (UF, FSU, VA Tech, Louisville), the offense sputtered and was predictable. Granted, leading rusher Duke Johnson missed the last 2.5 of those games, but the Hurricanes need to be much more efficient in year two under Coley and much less feast or famine if the Canes are going to progress not just offensively, but as a team.

Quarterbacks: UM’s last two quarterbacks, Jacory Harris and Stephen Morris, have been equally maligned and lauded by Hurricane fans, but I bet they would probably give their right arm to have either of those guys under center this year. Morris graduated and in the spring senior Ryan Williams, last year’s backup and this season’s presumed starter, went down with a knee injury. The coaching staff insists Williams could be back as early September 20 against Nebraska in game four. If not, this is real troublesome.

Let’s assume Williams does come back at some point. He might waltz in and take right over. While that is likely more an indictment of the other guys than anything else, Williams (369 yards, 69%, 3 TDs, 1 interception) has starting experience from his days at Memphis, a big arm, and looked good in limited opportunities last year. He’s serviceable. The rest of the guys? Eh. Redshirt frosh Kevin Olsen was a top recruit, but he has had off-field issues and struggled in the spring. Now reports are swirling that Olsen is going to be suspended for the season opener due to a failed drug test. That means that Kansas transfer Jake Heaps and sophomore Gary Crow will battle to be the opening day starter. Heaps (1414 yds, 49%, 8 TDs, 10 ints at Kansas) was a much-hyped recruit who started at BYU as a true freshman and had his moments, struggled through a sophomore slump, transferred to Kansas, struggled there, and now is at UM as a grad student. Heaps has the experience and the physical tools, but I’d also argue the fact he’s even on the roster shows how weak UM is at the position. Crow seems like a longshot, but he’s been in the system. True frosh Brad Kaaya will get a look, but I’m guessing he likely will redshirt.

Running Backs: No matter who the QB is, expect him to turn around and hand off to Duke Johnson. A lot. UM’s offense just was not the same without Johnson (920 yds, 6.3 average, 6 TDs), a simply dynamic player who can go for a home run at any moment. Boasting a career 6.6 yards per carry average, Johnson may just need to top the 115 yards per game he averaged through 8 games last year for this offense to succeed.

Dallas Crawford, last year’s backup and then starter when Johnson got hurt, has moved back to defensive back so new depth needs to be found. Sophomore Gus Edwards (338 yds, 5.1 avg, 5 TDs) had his moments as a freshman and is a power back so that should provide a nice 1-2 punch with Johnson. Incoming freshman Joseph Yearby will get carries right away. Blessed with athleticism and big-play potential, Yearby could provide some help in situational packages. That’s it as far as depth goes so these guys need to stay healthy.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: The real shame of the QB situation, if you are a Miami fan at least, is that the Hurricanes return one of the better corps of pass catchers in the ACC. UM can trot out several different guys who can provide quality snaps. The question will be: can the QB get them the ball?

Sophomore Stacy Coley (33 receptions, 591 yds, 7 TDs) was a serious big-play threat as a true freshman and will likely be the go-to guy this year. I’d be shocked if he didn’t flourish. Senior Phillip Dorsett (13 recs, 272 yds, 2 TDs) has struggled with durability, but when healthy, he is one of the most dangerous players in the conference. He could stand to be more consistent, but he has speed to burn. Junior Herb Waters (28 recs, 406 yds, 5 TDs) provides a big body and is steady. Senior Rashawn Scott and junior Malcolm Lewis bring experience to the table, although they could stand to up their production.

The Hurricanes return a nice duo at tight end in seniors Clive Walford and Beau Sandland. Walford (34 recs, 454 yds, 2 TDs) is a good all-around player with a definite NFL future. He should be a security blanket for the new QB. Sandland (9 recs, 94 yds, TD) is more of a blocker, but can help in the passing game occasionally. Sophomore Standish Dobard got his feet wet last year and has nice size.

Offensive Line: Last year was interesting for the UM offensive line. The Hurricanes started six different combinations of linemen in the first 9 games of the year, but still managed to field a pretty good unit. Not great, but very good. Of the seven players who logged starts last year, four are gone so this is probably the biggest question mark on the offense beside QB.

The left side of the line should be very good, what with junior LT Ereck Flowers (25 career starts) and senior LG Jon Feliciano (33 career starts) returning. Flowers is a future NFL Draft pick who has been starting since he stepped foot on campus. Feliciano is probably the unit’s best run blocker. Senior center Shane McDermott (23 career starts) returns in the middle and is a good leader with solid technique. The right side of the line is the potential problem area. Sophomore Taylor Gabdois appears to be the guy at RT while sophomore Danny Isidora leads true frosh Trevor Darling and sophomore Alex Gall for the job at RG. The coaches have a lot of faith in Gabdois and Isidora, but they are clearly unknowns at this point. Isidora has talent and size and people feel confident about him. Gabdois talks the talk (he recently stated he was as good or better than Seantrel Henderson last year), but many around the program think it is only a matter of time before five-star true frosh K.C. McDermott passes him by. The Hurricanes are not deep here either so an injury could really derail this group.

DEFENSE

Scheme: This has been a sore point, and that is putting it lightly. Coordinator Mark D’Onofrio was with Golden at Temple and led some decent defenses. One would assume that if he could do a good job at Temple, he would do even better with better athletes at UM. One would be wrong in that assumption. The Hurricanes have actually gotten worse every year under D’Onofrio and you have to think this is his last chance to right the ship, friend of Golden’s or not. The Hurricanes yielded 426 yards and 26.8 points per game as well as allowing 5.8 yards per play. Those numbers must go down considerably for the team to challenge for championships.

In an effort to change things up, the Hurricanes are shifting to a 3-4 on a permanent basis. They kind of bounced between the 4-3 and 3-4 last year but they are going all-in now. Will it make a difference? As much as fans harp on D’Onofrio and his coaching, the talent on defense does not seem all that great so the shift in philosophy might not make that much of a difference.

Defensive Line: So, yeah, this unit was pushed around last year. A lot. UM surrendered 176.5 yards rushing per game and gave up 26 rushing touchdowns. The shift to the 3-4 makes me wonder if that number will go down, partly because many of the guys on the line seem too light to hold up.

The Hurricanes look best set at end, although that unit is not without its problems. Senior Anthony Chickillo (46 tackles, 7.5 for loss, 3.5 sacks) was the top recruit in Golden’s first class and showed promise as a freshman, but his career has been underwhelming. Part of that is he hasn’t been surrounded by great talent, often facing double-teams, but Chickillo is also a bit of a tweener and will be even more so as a 3-4 end. He has bulked up to nearly 280 pounds to hold up at the point of attack, but many UM insiders say that has caused him to lose a step as a pass rusher. Senior Olson Pierre (33 tackles, 1 sack) is solid and brings good experience to the SDE spot. He’ll be tasked with eating up blocks. Depth is all about potential. Junior Jelani Hamilton has never lived up to his recruiting hype and perhaps the shift to end will help. Junior Ufomba Kamalu (13 tackles, 3.5 sacks) was learning on the fly last year as a JC transfer and flashed potential. At 6’6, 285 and with great athleticism, he could be one to watch. Sophomore Al-Quadin Muhammad (8 tackles, 2 sacks) is undersized at 6’4, 240 and will almost certainly just be a situational pass rusher. True frosh Chad Thomas was the gem of the recruiting class. He, too, is a bit of a tweener at 6’2, 260, but I would think the five-star at least see time as a pass rusher.

Defensive end has potential and some experience. On paper, the nose guard spot has neither. JC transfers Calvin Heuterlou and Michael Wyche and junior Earl Moore will likely rotate at the spot. Wyche is a massive guy (6’4, 330) who has gotten into better shape and the coaching stuff hopes he can provide an inside run-stuffer. My main concern with Wyche is, at least based on pictures, he has a small lower body and it makes me wonder if he really can hold his own. Heuterlou is slightly smaller (6’3, 310) but is much more polished. That being said, Heuterlou apparently needs to work on his conditioning. Moore is a try-hard type that won’t wow anyone, but he’ll at least give 110%. Still, he’s not who UM fans want to see starting. They really need the JC guys to step up. True frosh Anthony Moten is a four-star recruit that could provide some help here if needed, although he could stand to bulk up.

Linebackers: This has been a rough offseason for this positional segment. Jimmy Gaines and Tyrone Cornelius graduated, which was expected of course, but then depth was further hurt when sophomores Alex Figueroa and JaWand Blue were kicked off the team after admitting they raped a 17-year old girl. Now, the group will have a new position coach here after long-time LB coach Michael Barrow resigned due to family concerns. Again, pretty rough.

Amidst all the bad news, the one bonafide sure thing is senior MLB Denzel Perryman, easily one of the ten best players in the ACC. Perryman (108 tackles, 5 for loss, 1.5 sacks, 3 pass breakups) wasn’t a top recruit and won’t wow you with his measurables, but he has great range and instincts and does nothing but produce. He’ll push for postseason awards. The rest of the group is pretty pedestrian. Junior Tyriq McCord, senior Thurston Armbrister, junior Raphael Kirby, and sophomore Jermaine Grace will all battle for time outside. McCord (13 tackles, 4 sacks) is shifting over from DE and has good size and pass-rushing ability. Armbrister (33 tackles, 5 for loss, 2 sacks) has nice experience, but is just an okay talent. Kirby (10 tackles, 2.5 for loss) has rarely produced and needs to step his game up. Grace is perhaps the most talented of the group, but only goes 210 pounds and can get engulfed. True freshmen Darrion Owens and Juwon Young will likely get a long look.

Secondary: This unit has plenty of potential as there are several individual players who came to UM with recruiting accolades. The Hurricanes are long on athleticism, but short on consistency as this segment was just as guilty of breakdowns and lapses as any other part of the defense last year.

Speaking of that potential, one guy that fits that bill is junior CB Tracy Howard, a former five-star recruit who has improved each year. Howard (35 tackles, 4 ints) has good instincts and ball skills and is the unit’s best cover man. He oozes potential. Ditto sophomore Artie Burns (17 tackles, 3 pass breakups, 1 int), a raw talent with nice size. He has great speed and athleticism and leads to be the nickel corner. The other starter on the outside, with Howard, will be senior LaDarius Gunter. Gunter (46 tackles, 2 for loss, 9 pass breakups, 3 ints) has a much lower ceiling than the other guys and can be inconsistent, but he has experience and size. There is decent depth too with junior Antonio Crawford, sophomore Corn Elder, and true frosh Ryan Mayes. Crawford (32 tackles, 3 pass breakups, 1 int) will likely be nothing more than solid, but can come in and play quality snaps. Elder is raw, but has great speed and athleticism and was running with the starters in spring ball. He’ll likely drop down the depth chart, but he is one to watch. Mayes enrolled early and drew lots of praise.

On paper, the safety spot looks pretty weak but UM coaches and fans have been really talking this unit up so there is hope that this unit will be good. I’d lean toward being cautious, though. Junior Deon Bush (31 tackles, 2 for loss, 2 sacks, 1 int) was limited to just 11 games and 3 starts due to injury, but he has all the talent in the world. His career has been derailed by injuries, but he has the size and hitting ability to really flourish at SS. The battle at FS will be between junior Rashawn Jenkins and classmate Dallas Crawford, the former RB, and sophomore Jamal Carter. Jenkins (46 tackles, 3 ints) started 12 games last year and was steady. He missed the spring and that allowed Crawford to emerge as the starter. Crawford was actually a safety in high school and the coaches raved about his natural ability. Carter is probably the most talented guy outside of Bush and has tremendous upside. He only played special teams last year but he will likely see time at either safety spot this season.

Special Teams: Junior kicker Matt Goudis returns after hitting on 13 of 17 FGs. Pat O’Donnell, who handled both the punting and kickoffs, must be replaced and no definitive candidate has emerged, although Goudis will likely kick off. Stacy Coley, Duke Johnson, and Phillip Dorsett are all dangerous return men, although they tended to be feast or famine.

Schedule: It ain’t easy. Opening at Louisville with all this uncertainty at QB is downright scary. The nonconference schedule features a laugher against FAMU, but the other three games are against teams that went bowling in 2013 (Arkansas State, at Nebraska, Cincinnati). The ACC slate is mixed, with tough road games (GA Tech, VA Tech) but winnable home games (Duke, UNC, Pittsburgh).

Overall: Of all the previews I’ve done, UM is the team that seems to be generating the most variance in terms of how prognosticators view them. Some see the Hurricanes as a fringe top 25 team and the ACC media narrowly picked them to win their division. Others, like Paul Myerberg of USA Today, who ranks the Canes 49th, are scared by UM’s uncertainly at QB and bad record on defense.

I tend to side with the latter. The Hurricanes are blessed with a lot of talent on offense at RB and WR, but the lack of a triggerman worries me (or it would if I was a UM fan). Even if Williams returns, none of the guys on this roster at QB appear very good. Morris was erratic at times, but he also had some talent, which is why he’s in an NFL camp right now. None of these guys look like even sniffing the NFL. Then there is the right side of the offensive line. There is talent there, but it is inexperienced and unproven. In the big scheme of things, though, I’m just not sold that this defense improves all that much. I could see the secondary making a leap forward, but the line and LB corps (outside of Perryman) are just average. And whether the Hurricanes play a 3-4 or 4-3, the d-line just doesn’t seem to have the right mix of guys and lacks depth.

All that being said, I understand why the media picked UM to win their division because while they have questions, they have arguably the best talent on that side of the ACC. But, the Canes’ conference schedule is front-loaded (at Louisville, Duke, at GA Tech, at VA Tech, UNC, FSU) so they could have three or four conference losses and be out of the ACC title game picture before UVa and Pittsburgh end the slate. This team will likely be in most of the games they play, but with all the questions they have, I just can’t see them doing better than 8-4.