Miami vs Rutgers: Three Excellent Matchups That Determine The Winner
The Dec. 28 Pinstripe Bowl between the Miami Hurricanes and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights is just a 1.5-point spread favoring the Canes. There are numerous reasons for point spreads being close and this game has matchups that should make it a good game.
Here are three matchups that could lead to the Pinstripe Bowl coming down to the wire.
1) Xavier Restrepo against defensive back David Igbinosun should be awesome!
The heart and soul of Miami's offense is 5-foot-10 and 198-pound slot receiver Xavier Restrepo. He leads the squad with 74 receptions, 993 yards, a 13.4 average, and 5 touchdowns. More importantly, Restrepo is clutch. He will be taking his talents against a high-quality defensive back against the Scarlet Knights.
Finding quality nickel defensive backs who can do all of playing against quick slot receivers like Miami's Restrepo, being competitive with tight ends and bigger receivers, plus helping in the run game, are quite rare. That's Rutgers nickel David Igbinuson and his statistics back it up.
He has 275 snaps as a nickel despite being 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds. Igbinosun did not have a pass come his way against Michigan or Penn State, a sure sign of respect. He has 43 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, a pass breakup, 7 quarterback pressures, and a sack. Finally, for Igbinosun's statistics, he's been thrown at 23 times and only allowed 118 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Can Igbinosun consistently stay with Restrepo and limit his big catches? Look for this individual battle to go back and forth. Both are quality football players with NFL aspirations.
It's also a good bet that Miami quarterback Jacurri Brown will be looking for his slot receiver when the Canes need a third-down reception or a big play, making this arguably the most important battle of the entire game.
2) Miami's pass rush versus Rutgers' pass protection.
The Scarlet Knights protect signal-caller Gavin Wimsatt well. 14 sacks allowed for the entire 2023 season; good for No. 12 in the nation. That statistic is important because Wimsatt is one of the most inaccurate passers in the nation with six of his last seven games seeing him complete less than 50% of his passes. If the Canes make Wimsatt move his feet and disrupt his timing, it will be a long day for Rutgers
For the Hurricanes, 35 sacks are at No. 19 in the nation. Miami uses a variety of blitz packages and the front four can get to the quarterback by itself, too.
There is one extra interesting note here. Against Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Indiana, the pass protection for Rutgers did not stack up to the rest of the season.
Per Pro Football Focus for those four games, each of Rutgers' pass-blocking grades went below 60%. The Ohio State game would be the lowest at 43.1%.
Players like Miami's Rueben Bain, Jr. will get a chance to sack Wimsatt but will probably have to battle for much of the day to earn those opportunities. Bain has 7.5 sacks on the season and he's tied for the team lead with middle linebacker Francisco Mauigoa.
Overall, the Rutgers offensive line versus the Miami defensive line leads to a tremendous good-on-good matchup.
Miami vs Rutgers: Where to Watch, Betting Odds, Trends, Statistics, and More
3) Rutgers rushing defense against Miami's rushing offense is a great battle, and there are new starters that make it even more intriguing.
Giving up 137.8 yards rushing per game, ranking #45 in the nation, the Scarlet Knights orchestrate a team-first mentality with the defensive front. They take care of their run-gap fits and do not allow a lot of easy yards after contact. Their counterpart has a similar mindset and two talented runners likely to be at the forefront of the offense's running game.
Headlined by Mark Fletcher, Jr. and Henry Parrish, Jr., and the Canes' last contest at Boston College saw 242 yards, a 6.1 average per carry, and 4 rushing scores. For the season, Miami's 176.8 yards rushing per game is #42.
To surpass 150 rushing yards against Rutgers, keeping linebacker Deion Jennings in check will be a major priority. He's leading his team with 86 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. Middle linebacker Mohamed Toure is another player to watch and might even be better than Jennings. He has 85 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks.
With center Matt Lee heading to the NFL and not playing in the game, how Miami's checks and line calls play out will be vital to the Canes' rushing attack and the final score.
Rutgers will likely throw some unique looks at the Canes in an attempt to confuse not only quarterback Jacurri Brown but also the new starting lineup up front. Left guard Javion Cohen is moving on as well, so that's two new starters for the Canes.
Projecting the new Miami starters has Matthew McCoy playing left guard and Ryan Rodriguez at center. It would not be shocking if more offensive line combinations were utilized during the game as well.
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