UM defense looks for a little redemption
CORAL GABLES There were, undoubtedly, a few moments against North Carolina the Hurricanes defense would like to have back, if it could.
On their second drive this past Saturday, the Tar Heels found themselves quickly in scoring position thanks to a 56-yard run from Jordon Brown. Later in the game, there were a couple of trick plays that fooled the Hurricanes, including an 18-yard touchdown pass from receiver Anthony Ratliff to fellow receiver Beau Corrales. And with a little less than five minutes left, there was another Carolina scoring drive, one that pulled the Tar Heels within a touchdown with three minutes left.
There were, also, plays that showed how stalwart the unit can be, including a goal-line stand that thwarted a Carolina touchdown when Shaquille Quarterman sacked Chazz Surratt for a 10-yard loss. There were interceptions by Michael Jackson, Sheldrick Redwine and Charles Perry. More sacks from Joe Jackson, Redwine and Demetrius Jackson.
There have been moments they’ve run hot and cold, but for the most part, Miami defensive coordinator Manny Diaz has been proud of how his group has performed — and knows it faces one of its biggest challenges this week against a Virginia Tech team that averages 447 yards per game, including 180 yards per game on the ground.
“Toledo is the only team that’s had more than 5 yards a play on us. We had 17 possessions of defense last week and in a normal game there are 13. We played five quarters of football. We threeand-outed them or less eight out of 17 times. Our kids aren’t perfect, but they’re playing pretty damn good by all the metrics,” Diaz said. “There are a couple of things that we would love to do better. Our third-down defense started poorly, and it’s been improving. Our run defense is suffering from a couple mistakes. … What it all comes down to is that we’re not allowing points because we don’t give up long runs or passes for touchdowns, and then we have the mental toughness to stop people in the red zone. We never have panic.”
For several members of the Hurricanes defense, Saturday’s game is a chance at redemption after what happened last time out against the Hokies.
In Blacksburg last year, Miami was without several of its top defensive players, including ends Chad Thomas and Demetrius Jackson. The Hokies capitalized in their 37-16 win, totaling more than 523 yards, scoring on all four of their red-zone opportunities and extending drives with 28 first downs.
This time, with the Coastal Division title potentially on the line, the Hurricanes face a Virginia Tech team led by quarterback Josh Jackson, who has thrown for a school freshman-record 2,032 passing yards and 17 touchdowns. His top target is Hokies all-time receiving leader Cam Phillips, who has 216 career catches and has a catch in 35 consecutive games.
In all, Virginia Tech has outscored opponents 283-92, has managed 40 offensive plays of 20 yards or more and has scored on 32 of its 37 opportunities in the red zone.
All of that has the Hurricanes’ attention, especially considering the pride Miami’s defenders take in keeping opponents out of the end zone, something the Hurricanes have done on 20 of 50 opponents’ chances.
“Our defense, we pride ourselves on tackling, getting the ball on the ground and giving ourselves another chance to stop the offense,” said safety Jaquan Johnson, who has a team-high 51 tackles entering the Virginia Tech game. “So every time they get in the red zone, in our mind we are thinking every play is a big play, every play is not a touchdown, every play we are taking points off the board. That’s our mentality every time we get in the red zone.”