Instant Analysis: Virginia Tech-Miami

Miami's offense didn't reach the end zone in the second half of Thursday night's crucial ACC Coastal collision against Virginia Tech. Thanks to Marcus Robinson and Allen Bailey, it didn't matter.

Coach Randy Shannon watched his Hurricanes struggle mightily in the red zone in Dolphins Stadium, but in light of the way his linebackers were playing against Tyrod Taylor and the rest of Virginia Tech's offense, the defensive guru didn't need many points to prevail in this November head-knocker. With Robinson and Bailey combining for four sacks on behalf of a defense that revealed a familiar ferocity, the Canes climbed upward in the ACC pecking order. This hard-fought 16-14 victory didn't win any titles for the Coral Gables crowd, but the satisfying triumph does mean that if a former Miami coach loses this Saturday, the school that likes to be known as "The U" will be oh-so-close to a division championship.

Yes, if Butch Davis and North Carolina can't turn back Maryland, Miami will take the field next Thursday in control of the race for the Coastal crown. The mere fact that the Hurricanes are in this position is a testament to a team whose lack of experience has been more than matched by its bottomless well of perseverance. The unflagging fight in Shannon's defense, on display against Virginia Tech, carried the Canes on a night when their offense couldn't finish drives.

Robinson, Bailey, and their defensive teammates were so dominant after halftime that the Hokies had only one successful second-half drive, a touchdown march that narrowed a nine-point deficit to two with 3:28 left in regulation. On Virginia Tech's other four possessions in the third and fourth quarters, Miami didn't allow a single first down. Stuffing Darren Evans and the rest of coach Frank Beamer's ground game, the gang in green shirts was able to pin back its ears and rush the passer with conviction. Whether the luckless victim was Taylor or his fellow signal caller, Sean Glennon, the results were pretty much the same: Significant sacks and hellacious hits--primarily from Robinson and Bailey--quickly quieted Tech's rotating quarterbacks, enabling three second-half field goals by kicker Matt Bosher to nudge the home team to the finish line first.

To place Miami's defensive performance in a larger and more meaningful context, consider that Virginia Tech's one scoring march came precisely when the Canes--up by two scores--didn't have to shut down the Hokies. On any possession that truly mattered, Miami manfully maxed out. Tech's final offensive series--with "The U" protecting its two-point lead in the game's final three minutes--illustrated the situational superiority enjoyed by a Hurricane defense hell-bent on generating a pass rush.

After Taylor threw an eight-yard pass, the Hokies--with no need to hurry--faced a second-and-2 at their own 40. While some defenses might have expected a running play, Miami's front seven played for the pass. Sure enough, Taylor dropped back in the pocket, and a heavy pass rush forced him to throw the ball away. After stopping a panicky and slow-developing run on third down, Miami contained the fleet-footed Taylor on fourth down. Preventing the scrambles and broken plays that led to Virginia Tech's one second-half touchdown, a determined defense turned Taylor's protective cup into a trap. When the pocket broke down, Bailey legally hogtied Taylor and took him to the turf with 1:56 left. The Hokies--without timeouts--could not stop the clock, and the Canes had conquered the team that accompanied them to the ACC from the Big East in the earlier part of this decade. The resolute nature of a team that refused to quit on its season was matched--if not exceeded--by the relentlessness of its youthful and untiring pass rushers.

It's been an amazing series of six weeks for a suddenly revitalized program that found itself a few plays short of disaster at numerous points along the way. The same Miami team that lost at home to Florida State and fell to 0-2 in the conference on Oct. 4 is now the bearer of a five-game winning streak and a 4-2 league record. After surviving Central Florida and Wake Forest by a mere six points, and then coming back from the dead to stun Virginia in overtime, the men of Miami are looking down on most of the ACC. Now that Virginia Tech has been vanquished, the Hurricanes--with a little help--could catapult themselves all the way to a division title. Whether Shannon's squad takes that last step or not, this win against the highly-respected Hokies will ensure that this 2008 season will be remembered fondly in south Florida. A football school that's fallen on hard times appears poised for bigger things in the years to come, and linebackers like Marcus Robinson and Allen Bailey are the foremost reasons why "The U", with just one or two more years of seasoning, could once again be "The One" in college football.