South Florida Sun-Sentinel Palm Beach (Sunday)
Smith, Carter among starters back vs. UNC
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Multiple starters and rotational players returned for the Miami Hurricanes’ Saturday afternoon away game against North Carolina at Kenan Memorial Stadium after being sidelined leading into the team’s bye week.
Starting defensive tackle Jared Harrison-Hunte, backup defensive tackle Jordan Miller, starting cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, starting striker Amari Carter and starting linebacker Keontra Smith were all available against the Tar Heels, with coach Manny Diaz saying all five players practiced this past week.
Stevenson was the lone player out of the aforementioned group of five who played against Virginia on Sept. 30, but he left the game during its latter stages with a hamstring injury.
Smith, who was the Hurricanes’ starting weakside linebacker in their first two games, missed UM’s past three games after sustaining a knee injury against Appalachian State on Sept. 11.
Fifth-year redshirt junior Waynmon Steed made his fourth consecutive start at weakside linebacker in place of Smith against the Tar Heels, but Smith rotated into the game early while wearing a brace over his right leg.
Carter wasn’t available for Miami’s past two games with an undisclosed injury, while Harrison-Hunte and Miller both only missed the game against the Cavaliers.
True freshman cornerback Malik Curtis and third-year linebacker Avery Huff weren’t available against UNC because of the non-COVID-19, flu-like virus that Diaz said has been making its way through Miami’s campus this past week, according to Hurricanes sideline reporter Josh Darrow.
Neither Curtis nor Huff have played significant snaps this year.
Fourth-year junior cornerback Al Blades Jr., a St. Thomas Aquinas High alum, wasn’t available against UNC and is expected to miss significant time this season due to a sports hernia. Blades didn’t play against Virginia, but was used in a reserve role defensively and on special teams to start the season.
True freshman quarterback Jake Garcia, who Diaz said will be out until at least November after having ankle surgery due to an injury he sustained against Central Connecticut State on Sept. 25, was seen on UM’s sideline wearing a black boot on his left leg that went up to his knee.
Among the players who’ve played this year who have been ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury are: backup running back Don Chaney Jr. (knee), starting center Corey Gaynor (knee), starting left guard Jalen Rivers (knee) and starting quarterback D’Eriq King (shoulder).
Coin toss decisions
Like they have all season, the Hurricanes decided to kick off to start Saturday’s game after winning the pregame coin toss.
The Tar Heels took advantage of getting the ball first, putting together a seven-play, 75-yard opening drive that ended with a 51-yard rushing touchdown by running back Ty Chandler to give UNC a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter.
Diaz explained earlier in the season why UM has taken the approach of deferring on the game’s opening kickoffs.
“You’re trying to play for field position right off the bat,” Diaz said. “You get down there, get a stop by your defense and by the time [the opposing team] punts you the ball for your offense, their first [drive] is somewhere close to midfield.
“The real big thing is you’re trying to steal that make-it-take-it possession in the middle eight — the last four minutes of the first half and first four minutes of the second half. You can try to get a score right before halftime and get the ball [coming out of halftime]. That’s how you can kind of make a 10-or-14-point jump without the other team having the ball.”
The choice to defer almost worked for the Hurricanes, who scored a touchdown with 4:33 left in the first half to reduce their deficit to 28-17 and started a drive trailing by 11 with 1:05 left until halftime. But Tyler Van Dyke threw his second first-half interception on Miami’s last first-half possession to give UNC the ball with 55 seconds left until halftime.
UNC kicker Grayson Atkins made a 48-yard field goal to give the Tar Heels a 31-17 halftime lead.
Harvey ends drought
Second-year defensive end Jahfari Harvey’s interception return for a touchdown against UNC quarterback Sam Howell to tie the game, 7-7, early in the first quarter ended Miami’s three-year drought without a defensive touchdown.
Before Harvey’s pick-six, the last time UM’s defense scored a touchdown came in Miami’s 47-10 win over the Tar Heels on Sept. 27, 2018, when Romeo Finley returned an interception for a touchdown and Jon Garvin returned a fumble for a score in the same game.