They really don’t deserve this article
Rich Barnes-Imagn Images
Miami is not an ACC contender. I suppose some people who claim to be College Football experts on TV, Radio, and Podcasts think that Miami is a contender, but real ACC fans know that Miami is just a joke.
Despite consistently having one of the most talented and well coached teams in the country Miami has never won the ACC championship and have only played for the ACC Championship once. They always find ways to lose in embarrassing fashion to teams they shouldn’t, like last year against Syracuse and Georgia Tech, or in 2023 when they lost to UNC and Georgia Tech. Still, that doesn’t stop people from remembering the good ole’ days when Miami won a National Championship over 20 years ago.
You may ask, why am I writing about Miami as a contender if I don’t think they are? Because these articles get views and I love bashing Miami, so let’s get into it.
The Roster:
Joshua l. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The top players for the Canes are on the offensive side of the ball. Carson Beck transferred into Miami from uga last year. Beck was pretty hyped-up last year but struggled with throwing interceptions. Since transferring Beck has struggled with issues off the field, nothing illegal mind you just personal issues with his love life, automotive troubles, and managing finances. It will be interesting to see how Beck bounces back this year and if any of his drama off the field impacts his play.
Most of Miami’s receiving core from last year graduated, so the Canes will be relying on some new transfers coming in to make life easier for Beck. One returning receiver is Isaiah Horton who had 616 receiving yards and 5 TDs last year. It’s hard to say exactly what the receivers will look like, but hopefully they will drop less passes than the uga receiving core did when Beck was throwing to them.
The defense has a lot of returning talent, but most people don’t know what to make of them. Despite being talented, the Canes defense last year was in a bad place. Statistically they weren’t abysmal as they were the second-best team in the ACC for average run yardage given up and fourth best for average pass yardage given up. Still the Miami defense struggled to contain teams in close games and had a bad tendency to incur penalties. The defense also struggled when teams got into the red zone, so they will need to work on either buckling down or stopping opponents before they get close to the end zone. There’s no reason to think the defense won’t improve this year, but you could say the same going into last year and we saw how that turned out.
The Hurricane’s defensive strength is on the D-line with players like Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor. The secondary is mostly made up of transfers so time will tell if we see improvement there.
The Schedule:
MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Miami has 5 key games on the schedule, and they all happen in the first 8 games of the season. Miami starts the season against National Championship runner up Notre Dame. The Hurricanes then get 2 cupcake games before playing Florida at home. Miami then starts their ACC schedule in Tallahassee against Florida State. The last 2 big games are Louisville at home and SMU on the road. Their ACC schedule also features many teams that we expect to be middle of the road opponents such as NC State, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, and Pitt.
Compared to last year where the Hurricanes had a few more “gimmie games” this season is pretty unforgiving. Florida and Notre Dame will be big challenges that can match Miami in on the field talent. In the ACC SMU and Louisville have put together promising teams that are going to be aiming to play in the ACC title game. Fans may feel like underestimating FSU after last year, but the ‘Noles are still one of the most talented teams in the ACC. Miami will need to be ready week to week for challenges, and they had better hope they don’t have to deal with any injuries as that could derail their season quickly. If they trip up once, which is pretty likely given their track record, they could be looking at another season of mediocrity.
Also, knowing Miami, it is highly likely they lose to an unexpected team after coming off a comeback win. They don’t play GT this year so it’s hard to predict exactly where that loss will come, but my money would be on another Tech school in VPISU.
The Rub:
Miami finds themself where they are at the start of every season. They have a ton of talent and high expectations to replicate what they were in the 90’s; and like every year I have watched football, I am waiting to see where it will all fall apart for them. On paper things look promising for the Canes, but with a lot of transfers defining their offense and with many questions surrounding their defense the Hurricanes could just as easily collapse like FSU in 2024 as they could play for an ACC title. My money would be on them ending up around 8-4 and just being mediocre, but who knows maybe they prove me wrong.
Who am I kidding? They’re gonna screw things up again. I can’t wait to see it. If you feel otherwise, feel free to let me know in the comments below.