Canes Game 1: Observations From My Desk

On Thursday night, the Miami Hurricanes beat up on a team more known for its band (not pictured) than being a football juggernaut.

But still, FAMU provided the first test of the season, and in many regards, the Canes passed with flying colors.

What follows are some observations from my desk.

I hope this helpful to many of you because the game was not pictured to most (espn3 online? come on)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jacory:

Hard to be uber-critical of a guy who threw for 3 touchdowns and no picks in just a half of work.

Happy to see that his thumb wasn't covered and he didn't appear to have any discomfort.

But there was one moment that REALLY scared me.

Miami was up 7-nothing and Jacory wanted to throw a quick screen to Aldarius Johnson.

A blitzing defender jumped the route and SHOULD have had an interception, which would have been a pick 6.

Had it been an Ohio State defender, that would have been disastrous.

Can't happen.

Jacory's ability to clean-up mistakes will dictate how far the Canes will go this season.

No Huddle:

I like it. The Canes played with PACE on Thursday night. The question is, can they maintain it against a team that's AS athletically gifted?

That also becomes a question of conditioning.

Sure, your receivers will be fine.

But can your line maintain that tempo?

SIZE MATTERS:

Look at the size of Miami's offensive line.

What a difference a few years makes.

Remember how bare the talent was when Randy took over?

It's a totally different story.

On both sides of the ball, Miami looked physically imposing.

Again, opponent matters.

I was on the field last year when Wisconsin MANHANDLED the Canes.

Wisconsin is a middle-of-the-road Big 10 team.

Against Ohio State, Miami will get a taste of REAL Big 10 lines.

Will they be up to it?

I'm hopeful but concerned.

Thearon Who?

The Canes don't miss Thearon Collier.

I liked him.

Thought he was a dynamic returner and receiver.

But they have PLENTY of wide receivers.

Leonard Hankerson is the CLEAR number 1 on this team.

I'm really glad he decided to come back.

I think this year will make a difference for him and he will make a difference for the Canes.

Lamar Miller looks explosive in the return game.

Miami can throw Travis Benjamin back there.

I'm excited by the possibilities.

GREAT STORY, NOT READY:

My heart broke for Graig Cooper.

He was on his way to the NFL, when embarrassingly bad turf blew out his knee.

That disgraceful field in Orlando could've cost Coop millions.

To his credit, he battled all the way back.

He's back on the field.

He took contact.

Awesome.

But he's not ready for primetime yet.

The Canes have a STABLE of backs who will and should play ahead of him.

Coop needs to relax and get ready for week 6.

JAWS

Cue the music.

Adawale Ojomo is back and that dude is ANGRY.

He should be.

When a suckerpunch from a walk-on makes you eat through a straw, you play angry.

That's good.

He needs to.

I see plenty of talent from Ojomo, Vernon, and the rest of the D-Line.

BUCKEYES?

Will the Canes go into the horseshoe and beat the Buckeyes?

I have no clue.

It's going to be tough.

I was encouraged by 45-0.

It was a nice start.

Miami was a team with every reason to look ahead, and didn't.

They were focused, intense, efficient.

In a sense, this is truly a Miami team because there's speed everywhere.

I'm just concerned about the physical nature of how Ohio State is going to play.

To win, Jacory needs to play a clean game and NOT make a single, game-changing mistake.

For now, 1-0.