Miami vs. Pittsburgh: Game Grades and Analysis for the Hurricanes

The Miami Hurricanes got a big win against the Pittsburgh Panthers to finish the regular season 8-4. Now they'll wait and see which bowl game they'll participate in.

Quarterback Brad Kaaya was able to have a very productive game, and the defense was able to get off to a fast start. And credit has to go to kicker Michael Badgley, who scored just as many points as the Hurricanes offense.

The Hurricanes may have let the Panthers back in the game in the second half, but they were able to do just enough to earn their eighth win of the season. So here are some game grades to hand out for the Hurricanes.

Positional Unit	1st Half	Final Grade
Passing Offense	A	A
Rushing Offense	B+	B
Passing Defense	A+	A
Rushing Defense	C	C
Special Teams	A+	A-
Coaching	A	A

Passing Offense

Brad Kaaya was as efficient as you could ask for a veteran quarterback. He completed 21 of his 35 passes for 261 yards and one touchdown. He was able to target Rashawn Scott for seven catches for 74 yards and one score.

Kaaya was a big reason the Hurricanes were able to win the game. His presence in the pocket helped the Hurricanes moved the ball consistently, which helped Badgley kick five field goals.

Rushing Offense

However, the run game was nothing to sneeze about as the Hurricanes ended the day with 116 yards. Joe Yearby led the Hurricanes with 99 yards on 22 carries. He was able to run between the tackles and kept the chains moving when Miami needed it the most.

The Hurricanes would have loved to have gotten more out of Mark Walton, who only had 13 yards on 19 carries, but because Kaaya was able to move the ball through the air, the run game did not have to be as effective as it could have been.

Passing Defense

Miami did a good job keeping Pittsburgh quarterback Nate Peterman in check. He finished the afternoon completing 13 of his 27 passes for 142 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

The Hurricanes were able to sack Peterman three times, and Artie Burns got an early interception on Peterman, his sixth of the season. 

Peterman is not the best quarterback in the ACC, but he was able to do some good things this season. And while he was able to help the Panthers get back in the game in the second half, the Hurricanes frustrated him all game long.

Rushing Defense

If there was one thing the Hurricanes did not do well, it would have to be shutting down the Panthers ground game. As a team, the Panthers rushed for 189 yards and Darrin Hall had 103 yards on 12 carries and one score.

The Hurricanes also had trouble stopping Tyler Boyd, who had 47 yards on just three carries. The Hurricanes were able to make stops when they needed it most, but if the Panthers gave the ball to Hall 10 more times in the game, the outcome probably would have been different.

Special Teams

Anytime your kicker is able to nail five field goals in a game, you are doing something right. Badgley scored 15 points for the Hurricanes, and all of his field goals split the uprights. The only bad play the special teams had was allowing a 91-yard kick return in the fourth quarter, which set up a Panthers touchdown to get the back in the game.

But the Hurricanes recovered an onside kick afterwards to make up for the mistake. Overall, it was a very good day for special teams, which was much needed in a game like this.

Coaching

Credit has to go to Larry Scott, who led the Hurricanes to a 4-1 record after the firing of Al Golden. This team still made some mistakes, but they are playing inspired football and will play in a good bowl game because of the coaching staff.

It will be interesting to see what happens with the coaching staff at the end of the season. Scott proved that he can turn a program around, but there are also some good candidates out there. If Scott is able to win the bowl game, he will have to be a finalist for the job.