Everything You Need To Know: Miami

By: Kris Wright |
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Charlie Hopkins and the Hoos have won 2 of their last 3 games. ~ Ashley Thornton/aft photography

The Virginia football team entered November with a 3-5 record, but as winners in 2 of its last 3 games. In order to reach .500 for the season and bowl eligibility, the Hoos must win 3 of 4 games this month.

Accomplishing that feat will require the team to do something it hasn’t done since 2012: win a road game. The Cavaliers play back-to-back road tilts, beginning with Miami this Saturday. They have dropped 13 straight on the road and face a team this week that has played well at home. The Hurricanes have posted a 16-4 record in their last 20 home games.

The Hoos insist execution is at the root of the road woes.

“If we can focus on those types of things and eliminate the mental errors that cause you to go from 3rd-and-2 to 3rd-and-7 and then all of a sudden you end up punting the ball because you had opportunities there, 3rd-and-1 and you don’t get it, you kick a field goal – that’s another step that we have to take in order for us to continue to win on the road or to win any football game,” UVa coach Mike London said. “The players know it. Everybody knows it, coaches know it, and the expectations are to be successful in those opportunities.”

Recent history suggests Virginia could have a good shot against Miami. The Hoos have won 4 of 5 meetings under London, his best record against any team in the ACC. He said he couldn’t point to a reason why the Cavaliers have had more success against the Canes than other teams.

“I just know that our kids have played well against them,” London said. “It’s always important for us to be prepared, to play with energy. I know Coach [Larry] Scott has talked about his guys playing with energy. Well, when you’re on the road, we’ve got to do that. The way I look at it, it’s a road opportunity for us, so that’s important for us to be successful in that capacity. It just happens to be Miami that’s the opponent we’re playing. Like I said, they’re a very good team, quality team. They’re looking to get back and get the Miami swagger back and all those things, but we’ve got to make sure we play smart, we play aggressive, and we limit penalties and do the things that we can to be successful on the field. Again, I don’t know the secret, but the secret to winning games is something we’ve talked about off and on here throughout this season, and we’ve got to do a good job of that.”

Here is Everything You Need To Know …

Essentials

Game Nuggets

  • Virginia and Miami meet for the 13th time this weekend. The series is tied 6-6 with UVa winning 4 of the last 5.
  • UVa has lost 13 straight road games, including a trip to Sun Life Stadium in Miami in 2013.
  • Miami has won 16 of its last 20 games at home. A Homecoming win this week would make the Hurricanes bowl eligible for the eighth straight season.
  • Virginia’s associate head coach and linebackers coach Mike Archer graduated from Miami in 1976 and was the defensive backs coach on the Hurricanes’ 1983 National Championship team.
  • The Hurricanes will wear “Military Appreciation Day” uniforms for the contest. Miami will donate game worn jerseys and helmets to be auctioned with proceeds benefiting the Miami VA Healthcare System.

Spotlight On Miami Cornerback Artie Burns

On Virginia’s last road trip, a 26-13 loss at North Carolina, the offense struggled mightily in the second half. The Cavaliers turned the ball over on 5 of 6 possessions with quarterback Matt Johns involved in all 5 turnovers. That included 4 interceptions.

Back on the road this week, Johns will have to keep an eye on Miami cornerback Artie Burns. The junior leads the ACC and is tied for fifth nationally with 5 interceptions this season. That’s the most for a Hurricane in a single season since Sean Taylor had 10 in 2003. He snared two picks against Virginia Tech and had a pick in three straight games to start the season.

Burns, who finished second in the ACC in the 110-meter hurdles during track season, also has a fumble recovery this season to go with 26 tackles. With Tracy Howard, Deon Bush, Corn Elder, and others also playing well in the secondary, this will be a tough challenge for the Wahoos.

“You look at them, as I said before, they’re very athletic,” London said. “They can run. Bush, Burns, Elder – you mentioned all those guys with the interceptions and the tackles for losses and just all the things, the experience that they bring. So it’s important that the running game for us allows us to do some things not only on the inside, but on the perimeter, and also to challenge them. They’re very good players, and we have to be able to challenge them with our receivers as well. For sure, they’re in the tops in turnovers created, and that’s by no mistake based on how aggressive they play.”

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Demetrious Nicholson and the Hoos face an offense that cranks out big plays. ~ Mike Ingalls

Matchups To Watch

Miami receiver Stacy Coley vs. Virginia corner Demetrious Nicholson. The Hurricanes have an experienced receiving corps and Coley is no exception having garnered second-team All-ACC recognition as a freshman. He slumped as a sophomore, but has bounced back this season despite battling a hamstring issues earlier in the season. He ranks third on the team in catches and receiving yards with 26 receptions for 354 yards. At 85.8 yards per game in conference play, he leads the ACC in league games. Coley enters this week’s contest off a string of good games: he had a career-high 8 catches against Clemson, 139 yards and 1 TD against Florida State, and 87 yards and a score against Duke. The Cavaliers have conceded big plays to receivers all season long so Nicholson and company must be up to the task to contain Coley.

Virginia running back Taquan Mizzell vs. Miami linebacker Al-Quadin Muhammad. The Cavaliers move Mizzell around their formations and use him both as a rusher and receiver. He’s had 100 yards or more of offense in 5 games this season, including 3 straight. UVa could try to create favorable matchups in the short passing game this week by lining Mizzell up in the slot at times, especially on early downs when the Hurricanes tend to stay in their base 3-4 look. That could lead to a matchup with an outside linebacker like Muhammad, who has 27 tackles this season.

Miami running back Joe Yearby vs. Virginia linebacker Zach Bradshaw. Yearby, like Mizzell, is productive in both rushing and receiving yards. He has 641 yards rushing and 194 receiving. Yearby has another gear at times around the corner so setting the edge is an important factor this week, something that could fall to outside linebacker Bradshaw among others.

Virginia tackles Eric Smith and Jack English vs. Miami outside linebacker/defensive end Trent Harris. The Cavaliers have had problems at times with outside rushers and Harris is capable of creating problems. He has 2.5 sacks this season among his 34 tackles (third on the team). Miami coaches call him “Toolbox Trent” because of his consistency.

Kris’ Keys

1. Turnover margin. Miami leads the ACC and is tied for No. 7 nationally with a +10 turnover margin. On the other hand, Virginia is 120th with a -10 margin. The Hurricanes have committed just 7 turnovers all season long, while the Hoos have nearly that many in just the last two games (6). If the Cavaliers take care of the ball, then they might have a chance.

2. Limit explosive plays. Miami has 45 plays of 20-plus yards (34th nationally) and 19 plays of 30-plus yards, (44th nationally). That includes 6 touchdowns of at least 25 yards. Virginia’s defense has allowed 12 scoring plays of at least 24 yards. The Hoos managed to defeat Georgia Tech last week despite allowing two long touchdown plays, but that’s not a recipe for continued success.

3. Get Severin in the end zone. Virginia receiver Canaan Severin has 4 touchdown catches this season, including at least one in all three wins. When Severin gets going, the offense usually follows suit.

The Pick

Virginia can win if … its offense can keep pace. Miami has 30 or more points in all five of its wins this season and with the exception of the 58-0 Clemson disaster, that includes three homes games. UVa, meanwhile, has averaged 17.75 points per game on the road under offensive coordinator Steve Fairchild. Less than 20 likely won’t get it done.

Virginia can lose if … a special teams play decides it. The Hoos are vulnerable to mistakes on special teams, while the Hurricanes have some dangerous returners. That includes Corn Elder, the final ball carrier on last week’s crazy lateral sequence against Duke. Elder has a punt return for touchdown this season plus two other scoring returns that were negated by penalties.

And the winner is … Miami. This game is on the road and UVa doesn’t win on the road lately. Hurricanes 30, Hoos 20. 2015 record to date: 6-2.