Miami Hurricanes Football 2011: 11 Things We Need to See in the First Game

Like every year, there are so many things to watch for when the first game starts in September, like how the offensive line is doing, how the quarterbacks are adjusting and what the coaches are teaching.

This year for the Miami Hurricanes, there are more changes than normal.

With the new coaches, incoming freshmen and new schemes on both offense and defense, there are plenty of things to see.

The problem with the Hurricanes is they don't have an easy game to start the season, as they will be playing the Maryland Terrapins (a 9-4 team last year).

Here are 11 things we need to see from the Hurricanes on opening day.

Run the Ball

Over the last few years, the Hurricanes relied heavily on the pass game to score points. The problem with that is they never had a consistent quarterback who could do that.

As of right now, they still don't, which is the reason why Al Golden and his coaching staff is determined to run most of the time.

That means Lamar Miller and Mike James will need to be very productive.

Last year against Maryland, Miami ran for 218 yards, but had to rely on Stephen Morris's go ahead touchdown pass with 37 seconds left to win the game.

Miller ran for 125 yards (James had 51) and, if they are expected to win on the road this year, they will need more of the same, if not more.

Good Play at Cornerback

The biggest question mark on defense for the Hurricanes is cornerback, where Miami does not return any starters from last year's team.

The Hurricanes will have to rely on a freshman (Thomas Finnie), a running back (Lee Chambers) and a safety (JoJon Nicolas).

The only cornerback with any experience is Brandon McGee who is listed as a backup in the latest depth chart.

Miami held freshman quarterback Danny O'Brien to just 9-28 passing for 134 yards and a touchdown in last year's game.

O'Brien started the entire season as a freshman last year and threw for 417 yards against a good North Carolina State team.

The Hurricane cornerbacks need to be ready, whoever they will be.

Score Touchdowns, Not Field Goals

In 2001 and 2002, the Miami Hurricanes averaged over 42 points per game and 480 yards of offense per game.

Last year's team averaged 26 points per game and 420 yards per game, basically proving that the Hurricanes have been able to move the ball on offense, but had a heck of a time scoring touchdowns.

In 2008, the offense was so bad that the team MVP was kicker/punter Matt Bosher.

Last year against Maryland, Miami had 504 total yards, yet only scored 26 points—a far cry from years past.

Show Passion on the Field

After the Notre Dame game last year, in which the Hurricanes lost, new head coach Al Golden noticed something that Miami fans have seen for awhile—a lack of passion on the field.

Even ex-Hurricane Ryan Hill stated in an interview earlier this year that Miami just played through the motions last year.

That has to change and Golden and his coaching staff have vowed that Miami will bring back that swagger they once had.

Miami will definitely need to show that passion on the road against Maryland.

The Coaching Staff Performing Well on the Big Stage

Randy Shannon was let go last year after having a very mediocre four years as head coach for the Hurricanes.

Shannon went just 28-22 during his short term as coach and went 0-2 in bowl games.

This year, Miami went searching for someone who not only wanted to win, but bring back the glory of yesteryear and they did, with ex-Temple coach Al Golden.

Golden immediately brought in his own coaching staff and brought back a Hurricane legend, Art Kehoe.

The first thing that was changed was attitude.

Golden and his staff are making sure that everyone understands his expectations.

The very next thing done was conditioning, as Golden stated Miami ran out of gas in multiple games last year.

Against Maryland though, Golden and his staff will have to prove to the fans and teams across the nation that what he did this offseason really was special.

Cut Down on Penalties

Last year, the Miami Hurricanes ended the season as the fourth most penalized team in the country with 107 penalties in 13 games.

Granted, the top 20 teams with the highest amount of penalties had some pretty decent games, but when your offense is already non-existent like the Hurricanes last year, penalties equal losses.

The first game against Maryland will really show how disciplined the Hurricanes are under the new coaching staff.

Miami can not afford to have much more than five or six penalties if they want to win the game, unless they can put big numbers on the board.

Stop Throwing Interceptions

Last year, the Hurricane quarterbacks, Jacory Harris and Stephen Morris, threw for 21 touchdowns.

The problem wasn't just lack of touchdown passes, but the other stat—24 interceptions.

If Miami truly wants to contend for an ACC championship, they need to limit their interceptions.

I am not just blaming Morris and Harris; the receiver corps last year was also to blame as they dropped multiple passes and ran poor routes.

The first game against Maryland could determine Miami's starting quarterback situation for the rest of the year.

The Receivers Stepping Up

According to Al Golden, last year the Hurricanes dropped 67 passes.

When the passing game isn't that great to begin with, that is a horrible number.

With Leonard Hankerson graduating, Miami will need to rely on Travis Benjamin, LaRon Byrd and whoever else decides to step up this fall.

Everyone is assuming Tommy Streeter is going to be that man, but, unfortunately during the spring game, he was back to being nonexistent, so it is hard to tell exactly where Streeter is at.

Some think Aldarius Johnson or Kendal Thompkins will finally step up.

Whoever that person may be doesn't matter to me, I just know someone has to do it because Miami doesn't really have a threat at wide receiver.

Just like the quarterback situation, the first game may prove who deserves to be that third wide receiver.

Improved Special Teams Play

In the last few years, the Hurricanes' special teams have been less than special.

Take last year for example, Miami had a total of two returns for touchdowns, both happening in the same game against Ohio State.

The Hurricane returners had a total of 34 punt returns for a whopping 154 yards (4.5 yards per return).

The kick return game wasn't any better as they had 44 returns for 865 yards (19.65 yards per return).

To put it in comparison, Devin Hester had a 29-yard average on kick offs and an 18-yard per punt return average, both in the top 10 in the country.

Phillip Buchanon averaged 15 yards per punt return during his last season at Miami.

Things are different lately and that is something Golden has stated, even going as far as giving Travis Benjamin the starting role for both kick and punt returns already.

In order for Miami to win the field position game, someone will need to step up and give the offense some room to work.

Create Turnovers

In 2010, the Miami Hurricanes created 28 turnovers—top 50 in the country.

That statistic doesn't seem all that bad, but Miami had the second most turnovers in the country with 36.

This year, they obviously have to cut down on turnovers, but they also need to improve the takeaways and get into the top 20 if they want to compete.

When you look at the top 25 teams with the best turnover margin, you see 12 of them with 10 or more wins.

In that first game against Maryland, Miami needs to create at least three or four turnovers, while only giving away one or two at the most.

Just Win

The most important thing Miami needs to do against Maryland is simple: just win.

The Hurricanes have never won an ACC championship and if they want any chance of getting one this year, they need to win more than five ACC games.

This year, the first game against the Terrapins will truly show how much work was actually done in the offseason as well as determine if Miami even has a chance to contend for the ACC title.

The Hurricanes have the athletes, the coaches and the personnel to compete with anyone in the country, they just need to put it all together.

On September 5th, they will have the opportunity to show the entire country what the Miami Hurricanes are all about and, if they can do the above 10 things listed in this article, the 11th thing will be a guarantee.