Takeaways from Miami's 45-31 Loss to Middle Tennessee State
Postgame, center Jakai Clark stated, "we weren’t just as locked in as we should’ve been pregame.” After a first quarter that saw the Canes go down 17-3 against the Blue Raiders, that quote was par for the course for the entire game. From turnovers to poor coverages and poor effort, this Miami squad looked nothing of the part of a Top-25 team in college football.
The Canes looked unmotivated and the final score was the result of a lack of preparation and focus following their first loss of the season. Here are some quick-hitters from the Canes' abysmal 45-31 loss against the Blue Raiders
Tyler Van Dyke still looks uncomfortable in the new scheme
Last season, quarterback Tyler Van Dyke played like a true gunslinger and was one of the few consistencies on Miami’s struggling team. This year, he’s become one of the main inconsistencies on the team for many reasons. Van Dyke looks intimidated by pushing the ball downfield. As s a result, he has resorted to locking onto one receiver in the short-to-intermediate passing game.
Van Dyke had two ugly back-to-back interceptions that were uncharacteristic of the way he performed during the 2021 season. In his defense, the second was batted at the line of scrimmage and came right back down to Zaylin Wood.
Van Dyke also was only able to complete 50% of his 32 attempts in the game for 138 yards. He’s been unable to get into a rhythm all season and flash the same ability he displayed in 2021 that led him to win ACC Freshman of the Year.
Key’Shawn Smith was the best player on the field for Miami
Key’Shawn Smith, got it done as a receiver and a kick returner. Smith had a kick return touchdown that generated a slight surge in the Canes' momentum and he was Miami’s leading receiver in yards with 81 on four catches.
Smith was just a yard shy of 300 all-purpose yards, splitting his receiving yards with 217 kick-off return yards. All four of Smith’s catches were for first downs which showed he was one of the most reliable targets on the field for the Canes on Saturday.
Smith was undoubtedly the firestarter for Miami’s offense. Jake Garcia provided a boost, but Smith’s big catch midway through the third quarter, and his kickoff return touchdown to begin the fourth quarter, provided the team with much-needed shifts in momentum.
The trenches were controlled by Middle Tennessee
All season long, Miami was able to establish a steady run game and make it a staple in its offense. The Hurricanes' run game was essentially shut down when they got behind the sticks and got down early, but the tailbacks didn’t have much success regardless. As a team, they ran 38* times for 60 yards.
*counting sacks and yards lost
Between Thad Franklin Jr. and Henry Parrish Jr., the two tailbacks combined for 93 yards on 29 carries. A 3.2 yards per carry average doesn’t add up to a strong run game. Miami was once displaying the ability to punish defenses with its rushing attack. The low yards per carry average was another big reason why Miami's offense sputtered.
Middle Tennessee State also struggled with generating a consistent run game, but what they lacked in run protection they made up for in pass protection. The Blue Raider offensive line allowed two sacks and six tackles for loss while Miami’s allowed four sacks and eight tackles for loss.
The defensive backs were beat multiple times by the MTSU receivers
Just a week after a stellar performance at Texas A&M, DJ Ivey rebounded by allowing a 98-yard touchdown pass. Ivey was one of many in the secondary that simply were outplayed by the Blue Raider receivers. The speed of DJ England-Chisolm and Jaylin Lane was too much for the Canes in coverage.
MTSU quarterback Chase Cunningham looked the part of an elite quarterback. Not to say he is one, but Miami allowed him look like one. Fitting the ball in tough spots, making smart throws, Cunningham played with great instincts Saturday afternoon. Cunningham passed for 408 yards and three touchdowns with an interception by Kam Kinchens, which was essentially the only big play by the Canes’ defense.
Overall Thoughts on the game
When you enter the game as a 26.5-point favorite and you lose by 14, that screams that there’s an issue going on with your program. Luckily for Miami, they haven’t had a conference game yet so the hopes of winning the ACC Coastal are technically in sight, but not if they continue to play anything like it did on Sep. 24.
Miami has now found themselves in the midst of a quarterback battle, something the coaching staff likely didn’t envision knowing they were going to be coaching Van Dyke. There are a lot of adjustments to be made not only offensively, but now, defensively.
The first three games were strong performances by Kevin Steele’s defense. But after game four, there’s clearly a lot of room to make adjustments before conference play begins with North Carolina (Oct. 8) inside Hard Rock Stadium.
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