Miami Football: Midseason Report Card for the Hurricanes

The Miami Hurricanes ended the first half of their season at 3-3 overall and 1-2 in ACC play. While many consider that a complete failure, I do not.

The first game against Maryland, Miami was missing nine players, eight of them starters, and still managed to keep the game close losing by just eight points.

In the second game of the year, the Hurricanes beat the 17th ranked Ohio State Buckeyes, 24-6, while they got all but three suspended players back.

Miami then lost to Kansas State, who is still undefeated and currently ranked 11th in the latest BCS poll, as Jacory Harris' winning touchdown ended one foot short of the goal line on fourth down.

The Hurricanes then crushed Bethune-Cookman at home before losing another heartbreaker to 12th ranked Virginia Tech, 35-38.

Miami ended the first half on a high note, though, by going to Chapel Hill and beating the 5-1 North Carolina Tarheels.

Here is my report card of the first half of the season.

Offense: B

The Hurricanes ended the first half of the season averaging 30.3 points per game on offense.

Those numbers aren't eye-popping, but they are good considering the suspensions and injuries as well as having an entire new coaching staff.

The rushing game has been as solid as expected with Lamar Miller leading the way with five 100-yard rushing games and is currently ranked 11th in yards per game at 117.

Quarterback Jacory Harris has seemed to buy into the coaches' new offensive scheme as he has thrown for 1,104 yards, 12 touchdowns and just three interceptions.

Harris hasn't thrown an interception in the last three games.

Personally the wide receivers have been the biggest surprise of the year.

It is not because they have great numbers, but because they haven't been dropping the ball like they did 64 times last year.

Allen Hurns, Travis Benjamin and Tommy Streeter have combined for 964 yards and 11 touchdowns so far.

Streeter has been given the nickname by some as "Touchdown Tommy," as five of his 18 catches have gone for touchdowns.

The offensive line has been the lone issue at times on the offensive side of the ball do to injuries and consistency.

Once Seantrel Henderson gets fully healthy, I believe they will be okay.

Defense: D-

It was hard for me not to give Miami an "F" on the defensive side of the ball, but with a new defense and rotating 28 different players on the defensive side, I gave them the benefit of the doubt.

The rush defense has been the Achilles heel as they have been giving up 187 yards per game and they haven't even played Georgia Tech yet.

The defensive line has been marred with injuries and suspensions though, losing defensive lineman Marcus Forston for the remainder of the season.

Curtis Porter, Shayon Green and Luther Robinson, all defensive tackles, are also out for awhile.

The good news on the defensive line, though, is the return of their best defensive lineman, Olivier Vernon, who missed the first six games due to NCAA infractions.

The defensive backfield has also looked bad at times.

They have been giving up 221 yards per game (ranked 58th in the country) and only have gotten three interceptions all year.

Ray Ray Armstrong has helped since returning two games ago but is still just getting back into the flow.

Defensive coordinator Mark D'Onofrio's hybrid 4-3/3-4 defensive is not an easy one to learn and it shows.

Add all the freshmen that are playing along with poor tackling and you have the No. 1 reason why the Hurricanes aren't 5-1 going into the second half of the season.

Special Teams: B+

The Hurricanes had serious issues on kickoff coverage last year as their best special teams tackler was kicker/punter Matt Bosher.

This year Miami has turned it around, not giving up any touchdowns and making some great special team tackles.

The punting game has been less than stellar, though, as Dalton Botts has been struggling, only averaging less than 40 yards per punt.

He had a few punts earlier in the season that reached over 50 yards so there is no doubt he has the ability, just needs to be more consistent.

The kickoff/punt return team has yet to get a touchdown, but Travis Benjamin will always continue to be a threat of returning one back.

Jake Wieclaw has been the MVP of the Hurricanes special teams so far this year as he has been perfect in field goals and extra points.

In last week's game against North Carolina, he made field goals of 41 and 42 yards.

Coaching: B-

Don't get me wrong, I love the new coaching staff and I believe they have the right pieces for a successful future, but they aren't there yet.

The Hurricanes have either started slow or ended slow every game and I put some blame on the coaches for that inconsistency.

On the positive side, head coach Al Golden has done a great job at leading his team to an even record, especially with all the negativity that is surrounding the Hurricanes this year.

The best thing I like about Golden is that he cares for his players, you can tell in the way he is on the sideline as well as in interviews.

Barring any horrible outcome of the NCAA infractions, I believe Golden is the right guy to turn this program into what they were in the past, champions.

I am also liking what offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch is doing with the offense.

His new scheme has turned Jacory Harris into more of a complete player and what he has done to get Lamar Miller the ball has truly impressed me so far.

Defensive coordinator Mark D'Onofrio will also succeed, no matter how the defense has been playing so far.

He is a very energetic coach and once these players learn the system better and get more experience, they will be a lot better.

Overall Grade: C

The Hurricanes have a better team than they have showed so far this year. 

Overall the offense has steadily improved, especially after last year, when they averaged just 26 points per game.

The running game of Lamar Miller has proven to be one of the best in the country and the play of Jacory Harris has given Miami a serious upgrade on offense.

Their suspensions and injuries on defense have taken a toll on how good this defense really could be. 

Going into the second half of the season the Hurricanes must focus on getting better on defense, especially their defensive line.

Too many running backs are getting into the second and third levels of the Hurricanes' defense because they are unable to shed blockers and make tackles.

If they can correct the tackling problems and get more experienced on the defensive side of the ball, the Hurricanes have a chance to go 5-1 in the second half of the season.

If they don't, expect them to miss out on an opportunity to play in a bowl game.