Takeaways from the Hurricanes' 14-12 Victory Over the Cavaliers
The only true inconsistent factor in Miami's matchup with Virginia was the Hurricanes' offense. Special teams were the X-factor, while the defense kept the Canes in the game from start to finish despite the offense’s inconsistencies.
It was a good-ole-fashioned defensive slugfest and the Canes played a far more disciplined game than they did against Duke.
But, as always, there is still a lot of room to improve by the Hurricanes, especially offensively. It was good to see the run game active, but the passing game struggled with Jake Garcia at the helm. Here are some of the main takeaways from the ballgame.
Kicking and Punting Was Tremendous
Lou Hedley and Andres Borregales were two of the main reasons the Hurricanes managed the game in their favor. Hedley’s leg kept hitting true as he punted eight times with five downed inside the 20-yard line. With his help, the Cavaliers' average starting field position was their own 23.
Borregales hit four field goals on four attempts. He was called upon most during the latter part of the contest as he made one to end the first half and three in the fourth quarter and overtime. As the Hurricanes' offense could not put points on the board, leaning on Borregales kept Miami in the game.
The Hurricanes’ Defense Made More of an Impact
Although the UVA offense hasn’t put it all together this year, the unit had the potential to make strides. Miami made sure they didn’t live up to that potential and held the Cavaliers to 12 points.
Miami was anchored by the big men up front, most notably Leonard Taylor. Taylor finished the game with four tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
According to Pro Football Focus, Taylor ranks as the No. 2 defensive lineman in the country with a 92.2 overall defensive grade. However, Taylor wasn’t the only Hurricane getting in on the action as five other Hurricanes logged a sack or a tackle for loss.
Jake Garcia Will Have to Improve
Garcia didn’t have the greatest performance and he was called upon quite often. With 29 attempts, Garcia only completed 52% of his passes, completing 15. Garcia did go up against a strong pass defense, arguably one of the best in the ACC. However, if Tyler Van Dyke is out for more than a few weeks, he’ll have to be more efficient moving forward.
He didn’t turn the ball over, though, a sign of significant progress as he had five turnovers against Duke the week before.
The offense did him some favors, mostly by the run game. Henry Parrish Jr. was able to find success as he posted over 100 yards on the ground, his first 100+ yard showing since Week 2.
As a result, a lot of the weight was taken off Garcia’s shoulders. If Miami can continue to play complementary football with Garcia in the backfield, then he should only become more efficient. We'd like to see the continued usage of freshman quarterback Jacurri Brown as a dual-threat, as well.
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