Keys to a Miami Hurricanes Victory vs. Virginia in Week 9
Hurricanes fans have been put through the wringer this season, watching Miami fall from the AP Top 25 to the bottom tier of the ACC.
The middle of the conference pack is probably where the Canes will remain for the rest of the year, but that doesn't mean they can mail it in for these last five weeks. After all, they still have their pride, and recruits, to play for.
If head coach Mario Cristobal wants to make Miami's future a little brighter, he's got to string together some wins to close out this campaign. This contest at Virginia is one of the most winnable games they have left, and the Canes need to get the job done.
Here are the key factors for the Hurricanes to focus on this week.
KEY #1: Win the battle in the trenches
It's been a tale of two units for the Hurricanes linemen this season. The defensive line has flourished, particularly Akheem Mesidor and Darrell Jackson Jr., who have both received individual recognitions this season.
On the other side of the ball, things haven't gone quite as smoothly.
Several of the Canes' key blockers have been marred with injury, which has no doubt hindered their performance. But there hasn't been much cohesiveness up front since Week 2, and last weekend it came back to bite them when quarterback Tyler Van Dyke was injured during one of the six sacks that Miami let up to Duke.
Without Van Dyke, Miami's going to need to establish the run game early. They'll likely be relying heavily on Henry Parrish Jr., who looks to be back at 100 percent after picking up 5.7 yards per carry against Duke in his last outing. The Canes have only broken 100 yards rushing once in their last four games. That was against Virginia Tech, when Miami posted 107 rushing yards, and it was also coincidentally the Hurricanes' only win in their last four contests. Needless to say, that's not going to cut the cheese.
Miami needs to run the ball effectively or risk putting their new quarterback Jake Garcia in a position to fail.
KEY #2: Put QB Jake Garcia in a position to succeed
It's looking like Saturday is going to be Garcia's first start for the Hurricanes and he's coming off a pretty rocky performance against Duke. He was subbed in for the injured Van Dyke and, to his credit, threw a pair of touchdowns. Unfortunately, he also coughed up five total turnovers. The game was likely already lost by the time Garcia got his hands on the ball, but five turnovers are simply unacceptable, especially against the Blue Devils' 86th-ranked defense.
The silver lining is that Garcia's pretty well suited to the offense that Miami opened the season with and OC Josh Gattis probably has some schemes tailored to fit the young gunslinger. Should the redshirt freshman be expected to put up Van Dyke-esque numbers? Definitely not, but he needs to take care of the ball in order to give the Canes a shot on the road.
KEY #3: Create Turnovers
It may sound pessimistic, but the Hurricanes are probably going to turn the ball over at least once against Virginia (and is it really pessimism if it happens every game?). So, the defense is going to have to pick up the slack and get the ball back for Miami. Luckily, Virginia's quarterback Brennan Armstrong has thrown three more interceptions than touchdowns this year (six touchdowns, nine interceptions), so picking off a couple of errant passes shouldn't be unattainable for the Canes.
While part of that plan will rest with the secondary sticking to their assignments, the key will be for Miami's pass rushers to put pressure on Armstrong to force some bad decisions. The Canes are tied for 102nd in turnover differential, which is admittedly horrible. Fortunately, the Cavaliers are more horrible, as they're tied for 117th.
If Miami can't win this turnover battle, getting back to .500 may be a pipe dream.
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