Canes get set to visit “Death Valley” for the first time

By Jason Kirk  |   Thursday, September 15, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

Miami Hurricanes
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Not only have the Miami Hurricanes had 11 days to think about their opening day loss to rival FSU, but they have also been constantly reminded about Clemson coming to the Orange Bowl and beating UM last year. The Hurricanes blew a 17-3 halftime lead as Clemson came back to beat UM 24-17 in overtime. When #13 Miami visits ?Death Valley? for the first time to take on the #20 Clemson Tigers in an Atlantic Coast Conference match-up, they're hoping to avoid their first 0-2 start in 27 years. In 1978 the ?Canes finished the season 6-5 under the final year of head coach Lou Saban, after starting the season 0-2.

Don't expect the same result with this team, especially with head coach Larry Coker at the helm, but a loss to the Tigers would be a damaging blow to the Canes ACC and national title hopes. Unfortunately, history is on Clemson's side. Only one team has won its first ever game at ?Death Valley? in the last 28 years. Marshall did it in 1999 in Tommy Bowden's first year as Clemson's coach.

The Miami Hurricanes offense had a woeful outing against FSU and needs to come back with a strong showing, especially the offensive line's pass protection. The line allowed nine sacks on sophomore quarterback Kyle Wright, who was making his first start against FSU. Offensive line coach Art Kehoe has stated that he will institute some changes in the schemes and players to prepare for Clemson's defense, which he considers very similar to FSU.

Quarterback Kyle Wright will need to have another productive game and limit his mistakes. Against FSU, Wright threw for 232 yards on 16-of-28 passes with one touchdown, but he also threw two interceptions. However, in his first game as starting quarterback, Wright showed the poise of a veteran, playing better as the game wore on. Even after being sacked nine times, Wright engineered a 95-yard drive at the end of the game to put Miami in a position to win the game. It's that type of confidence that head coach Larry Coker hopes carries over into the Clemson game as well as the rest of the season.

Also on the offensive side, tight end Greg Olsen knows that he will be a marked man come Saturday. Against FSU the sophomore tight end had eight catches for 137 yards, including four third-down catches for 64 yards in UM's last drive of the game. Olsen knows that the Tiger defense will key on him, but hopefully it will give Miami's other receivers more open looks for big plays. Running back, Tyrone Moss, who has been hindered with a bruised right shin suffered against FSU and has been limited in practice, has said he will play on Saturday against Clemson. Whether Moss starts, Coker said backups Derron Thomas and Charlie Jones will play more Saturday. After the loss to FSU, Coker said he made a mistake by not playing them more.

On defense, the Miami Hurricanes will need to continue the aggressive play they showed against FSU. Clemson Tigers quarterback Charlie Whitehurst has failed to complete only nine of the 41 pass attempts he's thrown this season, which includes 363 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. His 168.5 passing efficiency leads the ACC so far this season and nearly doubles his rating from last year.

Look for this game to be an exciting one, as both teams head into Saturday with something to prove. Miami needs to show that they're a national contender and avoid a 0-2 start and Clemson needs to show that last season's upset victory was not a fluke.
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