Miami Hurricanes Need To Keep Momentum Going Against Virginia

After coming off a convincing win against a good UNC team, Miami has a couple of easier games ahead of them.

The first of the two is against Virginia.  The the Cavaliers have three wins, though they played USC and FSU tough this year. 

Virginia comes into the game winless in the ACC and will come out fighting.

The Cavaliers are led by quarterback Mark Verica.  He has completed 58 percent of his passes throwing for 1,489 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions.  He is no threat at running the ball, having minus 69 yards rushing.

The leading rusher for Virginia is Keith Payne, who has 471 yards on 96 carries and 10 touchdowns.

The leading receiver for the Cavaliers is Kris Burd, who has 472 yards on 32 catches with four touchdowns.

What has really killed the Cavaliers this year is their lack of defensive playmakers. They rank 74th in total defense, giving up 376 total yards per game.

Miami on the other hand is led by quarterback Jacory Harris, who has thrown for 1,561 yards and 14 touchdowns.  He also has thrown 10 interceptions, but only two in the last three games.

As long as he limits his turnovers, Miami can put up some points.

The leading rusher for the Hurricanes is Damien Berry, who comes in with 648 yards on 131 carries and four touchdowns.  Berry is ranked 29th in the country in yards per game with 92.

Miami's best receiver is junior Leonard Hankerson, who ranks 26th nationally with 591 yards receiving and is on pace to reach the 1,000 yard mark.

The strength of these Hurricanes is clearly the defense.  They are ranked 17th in total defense, giving up just 302 yards and 18 points per game against top competition.

Miami is second in the country in tackles for loss with 65, or 9.29 per game, and tied for second in the country in sacks at 25.

Miami just needs to build on what we saw last week against North Carolina. They need to limit penalties and run the ball and Harris needs to limit mistakes at quarterback. 

I believe they will do just that and beat the Cavaliers, 30-10.