» Hurricanes fans send senior class out with proper salute,
MIAMI GARDENS — Friends and family always show up for senior day, but in the past decade-plus of Miami football, the stands haven’t been too packed for the final home game of the year. Saturday was different. Hurricanes fans, derided as no-shows for non-marquee games, were loud and proud for a noon kickoff against Virginia. Didn’t matter that UM had already clinched a spot in the ACC Championship Game. The school announced 63,415 tickets sold, and most of the tickets were held by people who shouted for four quarters, even while the Hurricanes were losing.
“The way this city has reacted to how we are playing is unbelievable,” said senior left tackle Kc McDermott of Palm Beach Central High, one of 14 players Miami honored before the game. “We have a really good thing going on right here . ... We gave the city a reason to believe.”
The Hurricanes struggled to find their legs, after a pair of prime-time matchups against top-15 teams. Linebacker Shaq Quarterman engaged in a bit of double-speak when he discussed Saturday’s slow start.
“A lesson was definitely learned,” he said. “Not that we were, but we can’t become complacent at all in any matter.”
Coach Mark Richt wouldn’t cop to that either.
“They were ready to play,” he said of Virginia. “We were ready to play, too. They took it to us early on.
“Not used to having guys move the ball like that on our defense. They did a great job. Offensively, we were hot and cold. Pretty typical day for us.”
But fans — and the team — didn’t go into hiding after Miami went down 28-14 early in the second half. Winning 15 games in a row will have everyone believing.
It used to be different around here. Even last year, when three of their four losses came by a combined 11 points. Call it luck, but the Hurricanes used to blow games like this.
McDermott called it “poise and confidence. No matter if you’re up by 20 at halftime or down by a touchdown,” he said. “That’s something this team this year has done that I haven’t really seen that in the past four years.”
Another senior, defensive end Trent Harris, wasn’t ready to look back.
“This season’s just getting started,” he said.
Chain links: Miami’s turnover-happy defense didn’t keep its remarkable streak going. The Hurricanes had three turnovers, after putting up four in each of its four previous games. But they added to their takeaway total (27), which moved them into a tie for second nationally, pending the results of Saturday’s late games.
UM couldn’t score off Michael Jackson’s fumble recovery in the first quarter, but Jaquan Johnson’s interception return for a touchdown tied it at 28.
“Jaquan does that every day,” quarterback Malik Rosier said. “Every day in practice. He finishes every play like that, so it wasn’t even a big deal for us.”
Travis Homer (Oxbridge Academy) became the first offensive player honored in the brief history of the Turnover Chain, though his play came on special teams. He recovered a fumbled punt at 9:20 of the second quarter. Dayall Harris caught a 36-yard touchdown pass on the next play.
Homer, who became Miami’s No. 1 back after Mark Walton’s season-ending injury Oct. 7, is 151 yards from the 1,000-yard mark.
Berrios OK: Mark Richt said senior wideout Braxton Berrios, Miami’s main punt returner, was not on the field during a fourth-quarter return that drew a penalty because he was “banged up,” but Berrios is “OK.” Jeff Thomas, who wears No. 4, subbed in for Berrios. The issue: Johnson, playing on coverage teams, also wears No. 4. That drew a 5-yard penalty for illegal participation, which Virginia declined.
Still perfect: A few notes on Miami’s unbeaten start: Richt is 10-0 for the first time in his career (he started 8-0 at Georgia once, in 2002) . ... UM extended its conference mark to 7-0. Its best start in its first 13 ACC seasons: 3-0 in 2004, 2012 and 2013.