Need to execute is a top priority

Richt steadfast in his desire to continue calling plays

CORAL GABLES — While the Miami Hurricanes have tried to fight their way out of what is now a four-game losing streak, coach Mark Richt has faced a firestorm of criticism from fans and former players for his decision to remain the play caller.

Last week, former Hurricanes coach Jimmy Johnson stepped into the fray, too, saying during a radio appearance with WQAM 560’s Joe Rose, that he believes calling plays is too much for a college coach, considering the increased time demands and responsibilities the position requires.

On Monday, Richt — who has said multiple times during the last month that he intends to continue calling plays — reiterated his belief that the Hurricanes need to find ways to produce and be better, something they managed to do at times during their 27-21 loss at Georgia Tech on Saturday.

He also pointed out that coaches and play callers are often under the most scrutiny when a team is struggling, as the Hurricanes have been.

“I think if you look across the country, people do it both ways. Sometimes, the head coaches are making the calls, sometimes they’re not. It’s what that coach decides is the best thing to do,” Richt responded when asked by Rose

during his weekly radio appearance about Johnson’s comments. “You’ve seen head coaches that have coordinators that have great success and head coaches that have coordinators that don’t have great success. You have head coaches that are calling them that things are ripping and roaring, and some that they’re not going quite so good. It’s not like it’s never been done and it can’t be done. That’s not the case.

“We’re certainly not hitting on all cylinders right now and I know this – whoever’s calling the plays, whether it’s the head coach or not, he’s the guy that’s going to get most of the criticism because that’s what people can see and point to. Just like quarterback, the play-caller, those are the guys … they’re center stage, so to speak.”

When Rose joked that there’s been plenty of advice provided to Richt, from fans and former players on social media and beyond, the coach quipped, “Oh yeah, I appreciate all their help.”

For Richt, having the opportunity to both call his own plays and coach quarterbacks was part of the allure when he opted to take over as coach in 2015. The coach had relinquished some of those duties during his latter years as Georgia’s coach. At Miami, so far, it’s been different.

Asked about the development of some of the younger Hurricanes, another issue that has riled fans, Richt said many of the mistakes he’s seeing from them — like freshman receiver Mark Pope’s illegal block that put Miami in a 2nd-and-29 situation against Georgia Tech — are the kinds of errors typically made by freshmen still learning the college game.

He added that he’s confident those players will continue to grow and that they have the talent to make an impact.

“I see that there are a lot of young players and they’re playing for sure. True freshmen are kind of growing as they go,” Richt said. “They get experience. We throw a swing pass out there and the corner comes hard and we get a young guy that decides to cut [block] the guy. You can’t cut the guy. You’ve got to man up and block him. We know that, he knows that, but he made that freshman mistake that negated a 2nd-and-15 and we got 14 yards on that play. Could’ve been sitting there at 3rd-and-1 on the ball that Brevin Jordan caught, another true freshman. You get things like that here and there that, little mistakes that seem little, but they add up.

“I think these guys are developing, but it does take some time. You want everything to happen right away. Everybody wants instant success. The freshmen want instant success. The coaches want it. The fans want it. But it doesn’t always happen overnight. Some of the greatest players will look back on their freshman year and they usually laugh at the tape and say, ‘I thought I was doing it, but I didn’t really get it.’ It takes time. No one wants to give anybody time, but that’s the reality of it.”

Miami (5-5, 2-4 ACC) will try to end its losing streak and secure bowl eligibility when it travels to Virginia Tech (4-5, 3-3) on Saturday afternoon.

LYNNE SLADKY/AP Hurricanes coach Mark Richt, who has been Miami’s play caller throughout his three-year tenure in Coral Gables.