Miami Hurricanes
Preview 2007
By
Michael Bradley and
Pete Fiutak
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2007 Miami Offense Preview |
2007 Miami Defense Preview
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2007 Miami Depth Chart
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2006 CFN Miami
Preview
It might
seem curious that after a season in which Miami was criticized
heavily for a perceived return to its “bad old days”, the school
would turn to a veteran of its past for help in cleansing the
Hurricane name. But new head coach Randy Shannon is not one of those
‘Canes you wouldn’t want to take home to meet the folks. He may
bleed orange-and-green, but you won’t find him showboating or
grandstanding. And you sure won’t find him celebrating an on-field
brawl.
Shannon is Miami through and through, but he’s also a disciplinarian
capable of restoring order and making sure none (or very little) of
the foolishness happens again. Calling it discipline might be too
easy; an overall attitude adjustment needs to be made.
Head coach: Randy Shannon
1st year
Returning Lettermen:
Off. 29, Def. 28, ST 4
Lettermen Lost: 15 |
Ten
Best Miami Players
1. S Kenny Phillips, Jr.
2. DE Calais Campbell, Jr.
3. RB Javarris James, Soph.
4. DE Eric Moncur, Jr.
5. RB Graig Cooper, Fr.
6. OT Jason Fox, Soph.
7. DT Antonio Dixon, Jr.
8. WR Lance Leggett, Sr.
9. QB Kyle Wright, Sr.
10. QB Kirby Freeman, Jr. |
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2007 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 8-4 |
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Sept. 1 |
Marshall |
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Sept. 8 |
at
Oklahoma |
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Sept. 15 |
FIU |
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Sept. 20 |
Texas A&M |
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Sept. 29 |
Duke |
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Oct.
6 |
at North Carolina |
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Oct.
13 |
Georgia Tech |
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Oct.
20 |
at
Florida State |
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Nov.
3 |
NC State |
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Nov.
10 |
Virginia |
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Nov.
17 |
at
Virginia Tech |
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Nov.
24 |
at
Boston College |
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2006
Schedule
CFN
Prediction:
11-1
2006 Record:
7-6
Preview 2006 predicted wins |
| 9/4 |
Florida State
L 14-10 |
| 9/9 |
Florida A&M
W 51-10 |
| 9/16 |
at Louisville
L 31-7 |
|
9/30 |
Houston
W 14-13 |
| 10/7 |
North Carolina
W 27-7 |
| 10/14 |
FIU
W 35-0 |
| 10/21 |
at Duke
W 20-15 |
| 10/28 |
at Georgia Tech L 30-23 |
| 11/4 |
Virginia Tech
L 17-10 |
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11/11 |
at Maryland
L 14-13 |
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11/18 |
at Virginia
L 17-7 |
| 11/23 |
Boston College
W 17-14 |
| 12/31 |
MPC Computers Bowl
Nevada W 21-20 |
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For some, coaching at the U requires walking a delicate path between the
school’s long-time – and carefully cultivated – outlaw image, which is
quite appealing to recruits, and delivering an airtight program capable
of winning championships. Shannon would appear to be the man to do that.
He was endorsed by former Miami players during the search process for
Larry Coker’s successor, and demonstrated during his time as a coach in
Coral Gables that he has the football knowledge and personal authority
to prevent the headline-making embarrassments on and off the field.
In the end, though, it’s all about winning. Miami’s community can suffer
on-field brawls and other missteps far more willingly when the victories
pile up, and the Orange Bowl is rocking. That didn’t happen the last
couple seasons under Coker, and for that, he was asked to leave. It
didn’t matter that he had won a national title and had come within an
extremely late flag of a second. The perception was that he had lost
control of the team and that Miami was no longer relevant on the
national scene.
Shannon won’t have much of a honeymoon period, since he was widely
perceived to be a compromise candidate, after others – most notably
Rutgers’ Greg Schiano – turned down the job. Worse, he’ll be operating
at something of a deficit, given the school’s poor facilities, which
played a significant role throughout the selection process. What Shannon
does have is some talent at his disposal. Sixteen starters return, and a
whole cast of young reserves gained experience last season.
The ‘Canes may not be ready to terrorize the ACC and beyond, especially
given a non-conference schedule that includes Oklahoma and Texas A&M,
but Shannon has some weapons. He must use them to return Miami to its
one-time dominance, rather than reminding people of the ‘Canes’
less-seemly side.
What to look for on offense: New coordinator Patrick Nix must first
decide whether he’ll use Kyle Wright, who missed the last four games
with a thumb injury, or Kirby Freeman under center. Whoever wins the
competition will be expected to look downfield more, but not to the
detriment of the ground game, which should be stout thanks to the return
of sterling sophomore RB Javarris James and four offensive line
regulars.
What to look for on defense: Shannon isn’t going to make big
changes. This was a nasty defense last season, but it never got the
credit it deserved because of the woes of the offense. The Hurricanes
will still try to play plenty of Cover Two and get pressure on opposing
passers with their front four. One area that must improve is linebacking,
which wasn’t stellar last year and lost strongside man Jon Beason a year
early. Plenty of stars should emerge on a national scale, most notably
junior end Calais Campbell and free safety Kenny Phillips.
This team will be much better if … Shannon/Nix can decide on a
quarterback, stick with him, and then get consistent, productive play.
The Hurricane offense produced just 27 touchdowns during the regular
season, and had a meager 35% success rate on third down. Wright or
Freeman must emerge and deliver.
The Schedule:
Shannon had better have his team ready from
the word go. Marshall won't win the opener, but the Thundering Herd
defense will provide a nice tune-up for the trip to Oklahoma the
following week. After what's sure to be an emotional game against FIU
(considering last year's debacle), a very, very good Texas A&M team
comes to Coral Gables. Georgia Tech kicks off a tough second half, with
three of the final five games on the road against Florida State,
Virginia Tech and Boston College.
Best Offensive Player: Sophomore RB Javarris James.
The Hurricanes appear to have found their next feature back to follow in
the footsteps of Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee and Frank Gore ... and
he's freshman Graig Cooper. James isn't far behind and should be special
if he gets a little room to move. On pure instincts and athleticism
alone, James nearly powered his way to the school rushing record for
rookies while showing soft hands as a receiver.
Best Defensive Player: Junior DE Calais Campbell and junior S
Kenny Phillips. These might be the two best players in America and each
could go in the top five in the 2008 NFL Draft. Playing like a
modern-day Ted Hendricks, the 6-8, 275-pound Campbell enjoyed a breakout
season last year, collecting an ACC-high 20½ tackles for loss and 10½
sacks. Still somewhat raw with his technique and pass-rushing skills,
he’s got a chance to contend for every national defensive honor with
more seasoning and reps, and is an almost certain first-round draft pick
whenever he’s able to come out. Phillips has been compared to Ronnie
Lott and Ed Reed with a total package of smarts, toughness and range.
Key player to a successful season: Wright or Freeman. Miami
simply can’t go another year with a mediocre passing game. It would help
if a few elite receivers would emerge, and better pass protection is a
must, but unless Wright or Freeman begin to come up with more timely
throws and better play, Miami will continue to be an also-ran.
The season will be a
success if
... Miami becomes Miami again. It might still take a year to get all the
players and all the talent back in place to think about winning the
national title, but the swagger, and not the fake kind of last year, has
to return. The defense should be among the ACC’s best, so if there’s a
little more production on offense, and a better overall attitude now
that the “When will Coker be fired?” discussion won’t be hanging over
the team, a double-digit win season and a shot at the Coastal Division
title are each possible.
Key game:
Oct. 20 at Florida
State. The dates with Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech will be more
important to the ACC race, and the early showdowns against Oklahoma and
Texas A&M will be bigger on a national scale, but beating Florida State
on the road, after losing the last two in brutally ugly fashion, would
set the tone for the ACC season and likely would make the Canes 3-0 in
conference play.
2006 Fun Stats:
- First quarter scoring: Miami 52; Opponents 29
- Penalties: Miami 88 for 805 yards; Opponents 66 for 507 yards
- Average yards per carry: Miami 3.5; Opponents 2.3