Al Golden insists he's on board at The U for the long haul. The short term certainly hasn't been too rosy
for the Hurricanes' first year head coach who announced yet another
suspension from his team that is preparing for a big ACC clash with the Yellow Jackets.
Golden lost a dozen players to suspension earlier this year
after the Nevin Shapiro scandal rocked the Miami program, and more NCAA penalties
loom. Now the 'Canes will be without
senior defensive lineman Micanor Regis for a game after Regis was caught
delivering a low blow to a Tar Heels player in last week's 30-24 victory at
North Carolina.
The suspension could be key for a Miami defense that is about to go up against
the nation's second-ranked rushing offense.
Regis had 25 tackles while starting all six games for the Hurricanes,
including a sack.
Despite the most recent suspension, despite the Hurricanes
struggling with inconsistent play all season, despite the Yellow Jackets
sitting 22nd in the initial BCS rankings, Miami
is a 3-point favorite on the college football betting board. Saturday's total is stuck on 62 points.
Misfiring Miami offense
Miami's
win and cover at the Heels (-1.5) left the 'Canes 3-3 straight up and against
the spread on the campaign. The team has
alternated wins and losses since its season opener, a 32-24 defeat at Maryland.
The good news last week was senior QB Jacory Harris and the
'Canes offense that jumped out to a 27-3 lead 10 minutes into the second
quarter. The bad news was there wasn't
much offense from that point on.
That was pretty much the same story a week earlier in a
38-35 loss at Virginia Tech (-7.5), only this time it was the second half when
Harris and the offense had things clicking.
The Hurricanes almost pulled that one off before succumbing to the
Hokies in the final minute.
Johnson and Tech
Miami
will need to get a complete game from the unit against a Georgia Tech squad
that is 10th in the country in scoring (42.9 PPG). Paul Johnson's Rambling Wreck has been slowed
a bit the past two weeks, and getting his guys back on track is just one of two
tough tasks going into Miami this Saturday.
Johnson and Tech (6-1 SU, 4-2-1 ATS) got a taste of their
own medicine in last week's upset loss at Virginia.
A touchdown favorite on the road, the Yellow Jackets fell 24-21 when
they could not stop the Cavaliers' running game. Both teams finished with 272 yards rushing,
nearly 100 less than what Georgia Tech has averaged per game, and about 100
more than what Virginia
averaged entering the game.
It marked the second straight spread defeat for the Jackets,
and second consecutive UNDER following four OVERS to begin the season.
Looking to the future?
Johnson will also have to keep his guys from looking past
this game. Last week's loss might help
get the team's focus back on "one game at a time," but it's going to
be difficult for Techsters not to be thinking about home tilts against Clemson
and Virginia Tech on deck after this contest.
Whereas Miami
relies on Lamar Miller as its primary runner, the Yellow Jackets' ground game
is a true team effort. Three players
(Orwin Smith, David Sims and Tevin Washington) have over 400 yards rushing;
getting Smith more touches in this game will be a necessity.
The game features two of the nation's top linebackers, Miami's Sean Spence and
Tech's Julian Burnett, and both figure to be active Saturday. Spence is averaging 11 tackles (solo and
assisted) in the Hurricanes' five games against FBS opponents. Burnett leads the Yellow Jackets with 34 solo
tackles.
Taking a Chance: Golden
has an incredibly difficult job ahead at The U.
But it's Johnson who has the toughest task this week trying to get his
team up off the mat from its first loss to go play a 'Canes team that is still
talented despite the suspensions and scandals.
Miami -3
and UNDER 62 for my college football picks.