Miami Hurricanes Top Storylines For Southern Miss: Knighton's Season Debut
The competition level takes a step up for the Miami Hurricanes this week. After blowing out FCS school Bethune-Cookman in Week 1, Miami will face Southern Miss from Conference USA on Saturday, September 10th from Hard Rock Stadium. The Golden Eagles are off to an 0-1 start.
Here are the top four storylines heading into this matchup.
1. Hurricanes will face Frank Gore, Jr: The son of one of the best players in Canes history will be wearing Southern Miss colors this weekend. The former star running back from Miami Killian will be the focal point of the Golden Eagles' offense.
In Week 1, Gore carried 32 times for 178 yards and two touchdowns. He attempted four passes from the Wildcat offense and hit a 48-yard completion.
So, why is he not a Hurricane like his father before him? Miami, under Manny Diaz at the time, did not offer Gore a scholarship. In fact, the only Power Five school that did was Kentucky. Gore was 5-foot-8, 170 lbs coming out of high school and didn’t grab much attention from big programs. He chose an offer from Southern Miss over Kentucky and FAU. Ironically enough, Miami running backs coach Kevin Smith was at FAU back then, so he surely appreciates Gore’s abilities.
Most Canes fans would be happy for Gore if he makes a few plays on Saturday, but Miami’s defense will try and keep him in check.
2. Important Canes will make their season debuts: Jaylan Knighton was Miami’s leading rusher in 2021. He was held out against Bethune-Cookman as an injury precaution, but is set to take the field against Southern Miss. Knighton, paired with Henry Parrish, should combine for one of the most dangerous running back duos in the ACC.
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Meanwhile, starting tackle Zion Nelson will make his 2022 debut, too. Nelson had his knee scoped before fall camp and didn’t start practicing until roughly the week before Game 1. He’s ready to play and will add even more toughness and depth to what looked like a very effective O-line in the season opener. Nelson is projected as a first-round pick for the 2023 draft.
3. Hurricanes need to clean up defensive issues: Mario Cristobal said “tackling showed up in spurts” in game 1. Spurts won’t be good enough when the competition gets tougher. Cristobal also referred to the Canes’ pass rush as “undisciplined.” This game may not test the pass rush too much, as Southern Miss rarely throws the football. But the Golden Eagles can certainly test Miami’s tackling with their rushing attack. Keep your eyes on players like Akheem Mesidor and Leonard Taylor on the D-line as they’ll be looking to produce tackles for loss.
4. Will another wide receiver step up this week? Xavier Restrepo caught five passes for 100 yards and a touchdown against BCU. He was clearly Tyler Van Dyke’s top target and we expected this to be the case. We still don’t have a clear picture as to who else will emerge. A strong candidate could be Key’Shawn Smith. Smith had a brilliant game as a kick returner against Bethune-Cookman but didn’t record any receptions last week. He’s a proven deep threat so it’s probably only a matter of time before he gets things going. Michael Redding also appears to be a candidate. He caught a touchdown last week from Van Dyke and was universally praised during fall camp.
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