Big. Bigger. Biggest.
The game against FSU was big.
The game against Virginia Tech was even bigger.
Today's game against the Virginia Cavaliers is by far the biggest.
This game, along with Miami's game against Duke in Durham in two weeks, will determine Miami's fate in the ACC Coastal Division and their post-season opportunities (eligibility notwithstanding).
But there are many, many questions to be answered in today's game that go well beyond the scope of a single college football contest in November.
Can this Hurricane team, minus their best three defensive players, beat the Cavaliers in Charlottesville?
Can head coach Al Golden continue to silence his critics with another huge win like the one over VT last week?
Can coordinators Jedd Fisch and Mark D'Onofrio put the players in the right positions to make plays and produce positive results on the road in a hostile environment?
Can QB Stephen Morris play a consistent game and lead the Canes to 30 or more points and an almost guaranteed win by scoring big?
Those questions and probably a few more will be answered today against UVA. Let's all hope the answers are positive and that Miami can pull off another big ACC victory this season.
A win over the Cavaliers would be the biggest one yet.
After every game, Golden says we are improving. I say, "do all cane fans look that stupid".
Posted by: Al | November 10, 2012 at 03:56 PM
Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor???
Posted by: raizecane | November 10, 2012 at 03:58 PM
Nice one raize
Posted by: laquinton | November 10, 2012 at 03:59 PM
How is ACCCG talk ridiculous? All UM needs to do is still beat Duke.
In football. Not even Larry Coker with a FIU brawl depleted team and Turf Face making the decisions failed to do that. D'No can't be even worse than having that combination, can he?
(Just note, Cutcliffe is licking his chops at slicing this zone up.)
Posted by: orange 'n green in the vein | November 10, 2012 at 04:01 PM
We need Butch. Sanctions or no sanctions, he will bring this team back. He did it once, he can do it again.
Posted by: Al | November 10, 2012 at 04:01 PM
Hey Al, what's happening with that culture thing you've been working on?
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 04:04 PM
Right now it's more of a culture of incompetence, at least defensively.
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:07 PM
How many bloggers will go to the laughable reach of, "Fisch blew it with his play calling," when he put 38 points up and totaled 40 by having his guys get Virginia pinned deep enough for even D'No's feeble mind to sucker them into a safety for point 40?
I count two so far. If the team totals 40 points on the road, they should win the game, unless your defensive scheme is so bad that you give up 41. Same deal with just 38 guys.
Posted by: orange 'n green in the vein | November 10, 2012 at 03:39 PM
Me. The D gets you a safety(whether it was actually a safety or not) and you get the ball back at their 40 with 4mins to go knowing that the D is strugglin and wit out their 3 best players, YOU HAVE TO PUT THE GAME AWAY. But what did the Offense do,run it on 3RD AND 6!!!!
What would the ravens D be without Lewis, Reed, and Suggs?????????? Oh that's what I thought
Posted by: WWIN | November 10, 2012 at 04:10 PM
ACC talk is ridiculous because...
-Canes won't qualify for it. Will lose to Duke.
-Would get destroyed.
-It's a post season game. (Need to self-impose)
Posted by: The Brown Recluse | November 10, 2012 at 04:10 PM
The hole defensive coaching staff sucks. Even Barrow. Our LB's suck. He is a good recruiter, but a horrible coach. The rest should be on the way out.
Posted by: Al | November 10, 2012 at 04:11 PM
Hey Al, what's happening with that culture thing you've been working on?
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 04:04 PM
Right now it's more of a culture of incompetence, at least defensively.
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:07 PM
Truer words have ne'er been spoken.
FEAR THE LIE!
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 04:12 PM
d no is handicapping our team... we make them one dimensional..they keep more people in to block on passing and still beat us... we cant win with this guy.
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:14 PM
Gunther is a beast, and should be on the field 100% of the time! Can Duke play defense? Fisch needs to use more RUNNING BACK screens instead of wide receiver screens. Duke Johnson runs like Chuck Norris is chasing him, and he is the only reason the game was even close.
Posted by: The Brown Recluse | November 10, 2012 at 04:14 PM
Virginia had one of the lowest scoring offenses in college football until they played the U. We are worse than a division 2 d.
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:17 PM
We need to somehow launch a mission to UNC, steal the C. Barth cloning tech, and start to work at creating an army of Duke Johnson clones. Best of all, I think that under current NCAA rules Duke and his clones would only qualify as holding one scholarship.
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:18 PM
I hope Eddie johnson feels bad... Since he was suspended for the game. Maybe they win if he plays. You gotta love selfish players who get suspended and in the end hurt not only hurt themselves but their teammates as well.
Posted by: MIA Chi 'Cane '98 | November 10, 2012 at 03:50 PM
No kidding, I don't care if he has 30 tackles in either of the next two games, he showed us what he was all about today.
Posted by: j.w. | November 10, 2012 at 04:18 PM
Today’s game was not about all of a sudden having a great defense. We know the body of work the defense has done over the season and they were missing 3 starters – not sure why anyone expected the defense to all of sudden be lights out better.
Today’s game was about becoming bowl eligible and the defense came through in the third quarter, but we all knew it was just a matter of time.
Today was about having a 3 points lead and the ball and going 3 and out. Today was about having a 5 points lead and going 3 and out again. Our strength failed to get a first down and bleed the clock and left it up to our reliable defense to make the stop. Really – what is the definition of insanity?
Posted by: Nomad | November 10, 2012 at 04:19 PM
Our angles on pass d are awful.. we chased the ball all game long.. we couldnt cover three guys on pass patterns all day long
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:19 PM
OGV- partially disagree with you on Fisch. The O was helped, a lot, by special teams, and Duke's greatness. Then they get stuffed twice in a row, in UVA territory, against that defense, with the game on the line? Sorry, but he deserves criticism. You have to know you're going to face 8-9 man fronts, everyone else did, yet we had no answer on six plays. If you want to be a bad-ass OC, you earn it in crunch time, and he didn't.
And that's not to excuse D'Onofrio. Why you don't just blitz on 2nd down with 11 seconds, is beyond me. ANyone watching this defense for a quarter knows they aren't likely to stop anyone if they can't rush the passer.
Posted by: j.w. | November 10, 2012 at 04:22 PM
was it two 3 and outs in a row to finish the game for the offense?????
Posted by: WWIN | November 10, 2012 at 04:22 PM
"Really – what is the definition of insanity?
Posted by: Nomad | November 10, 2012 at 04:19 PM"
Funny you should ask, I just looked it up;
"Hiring a mutant from Philly to coach defense in a BCS league because of what he did in the MAC against teams that finished under .500 in conference play."
No really, that's what it says.
Posted by: orange 'n green in the vein | November 10, 2012 at 04:24 PM
The Turds dont score much but they are in the top ten... no offense and a stout d...top ten.
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:26 PM
Bring the bitch back.
Posted by: Al | November 10, 2012 at 03:36 PM
Bring who back??? This is always funny LMAO
Posted by: WWIN | November 10, 2012 at 04:27 PM
Duke had a great game. There is one word to describe him, and that is "special." He may have a chance at Portis's freshman rushing record. Barring injury, the Canes may only have Duke for two more seasons, so we better start winning soon.
I cannot defend the defensive coaches, especially Dno. Virgina ran the same plays, and D'No simply could not stop them. They are the worst defense in the ACC by far. I could criticize the defensive players, but there are too many to name.
The offense has to score 40 points for the Canes to have a chance. The Canes need to stop worrying about a bowl-ban that the Canes are not eligible for.
Posted by: BigWindyCane1 | November 10, 2012 at 04:29 PM
BigWindy, I'm partially tempted to say let's defend the defensive coaches with the same skill that they employed with our players today.
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:30 PM
"Hiring a mutant from Philly to coach defense in a BCS league because of what he did in the MAC against teams that finished under .500 in conference play."
No really, that's what it says.
That is certainly one definition!
Posted by: Nomad | November 10, 2012 at 04:31 PM
BigWindy, I'm partially tempted to say let's defend the defensive coaches with the same skill that they employed with our players today.
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:30 PM
LMAO
Posted by: BigWindyCane1 | November 10, 2012 at 04:32 PM
Haha yeah, bloggers do a better job defending Oh No!Frio than his defensive does on game day. It's truly sad.
Posted by: Felipe. | November 10, 2012 at 04:33 PM
Al is defending someone who is not even close to the standard of all those coaches he brags about that gave us 5 rings with another one porterstolen from us..we are not fooled when we see a bad coach
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:34 PM
From what I gather Tracy Howard isn't either mi@. Luther Robinson and his dad probably don't buy this weak sh!t too.
Posted by: orange 'n green in the vein | November 10, 2012 at 04:35 PM
THINKING THE UNTHINKABLE
If we lose the next two games, the U should ____________________.
[Okay 'Spacers. Complete the sentence. But keep it clean.]
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 04:38 PM
"Hiring a mutant from Philly to coach defense in a BCS league because of what he did in the MAC against teams that finished under .500 in conference play."
No really, that's what it says.
Posted by: orange 'n green in the vein | November 10, 2012 at 04:24 PM
That is certainly one definition!
I don’t think any one disagrees that our deficiencies (and there are many) on defense will need to be addressed at the end of the season. My frustration with the Offense is that they are our strength, but in key situations they are not coming through! I thought the 3rd quarter was probably our best quarter all year with the D making stops and the O milking the clock and controlling the flow of the game.
Posted by: Nomad | November 10, 2012 at 04:39 PM
They should ask Butch or Jimmy for an honest assessment of the progress of our d coaches. It took Jimmy one season to get rid of Olivadati.
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:40 PM
U
Posted by: hitter | November 10, 2012 at 04:41 PM
Same old shit! The D is horrible and the O can't finish. Is Shannon still the head coach?
Posted by: Canesteeler | November 10, 2012 at 04:43 PM
The Herb didn't get a chance to watch the game and when you aren't a top 25 team don't count on them to show your score on espn. I don't know why everyone is so surprised by the outcome, when you are young and lacking in certain areas, your weakness shows. Now we can stop all this hubbub about playing in the ACC ship game. We don't have the talent amazed yet to play in any bowl and yes especially on team DENO's wonderless defense. This defense reminds me of '85. They even said on T.V. Bama of all teams doesn't have a dominant Delinemen, well welcome to our world. Just get to 6 wins, and I'll be happy. What we really need to do is go to a 4-3 defense and on offense go to the spread option and forget the pro-style because we don't have the personel to run it. If Rocco throws for what ever he did today and he sux, just imagine what a Matt Barkley would throw for, with his receivers. Once again a mediocre QB torches us, as usual. That's our M.O. you play us to make your QB feel better.
Posted by: herbieibis | November 10, 2012 at 04:48 PM
It pains me to say this...but the defense was better under Shannon's regime. And under Coker, even in the wanning-get-outrecruited by Syracuse days-the defense was better still.
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:48 PM
NO ONE IS GOING TO BE DISAPPOINTED IF WE DON'T GO TO A BOWL GAME THIS YEAR except, perhaps, the QB on the team we would have played.
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 04:52 PM
On a different note, check out my son making a half-court shot!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPeYFLIbEQ0
Posted by: TonyCane | November 10, 2012 at 04:52 PM
There is no way that Virginia should have been close to us... they couldnt block our d line even with the young backs and lbs ... everyone knew they had to throw...theres no excuse...
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 04:53 PM
Al is very close to getting to the next level. We got some big boys on the dline with everyone coming back.. we just need a coach like kehoe from our past on the d.
Posted by: mi@mic@ne | November 10, 2012 at 05:21 PM
Like the NC games this is one we should have been able to win. Good teams find a way to pull these out. I can understand losses to ND, FSU and KS, top ranked teams that we're not ready for. No excuse for make Rocco look like Tom Brady.
Now we're down to two games, USF has a losing record, Duke is above .500.
We'll see what we've got left, but have to figure our goal is be bowl elidigeble so we can take the self imposed ban.
Posted by: Account Deleted | November 10, 2012 at 05:21 PM
At a loss for words lets win the last two games finish 7-5 and see what happens.
Posted by: Terrance Sullivan | November 10, 2012 at 05:41 PM
Honestly, Al, It is terribly painful sometimes to watch the way your team plays and loses. Man up and fire D'No before the top brass at UM send you packing. Also, for heaven's sake STOP wearing the tie on game day. It don't look so good when you're losing! Besides, the bloggers are all making a mockery of your tie; and, frankly son, you're embarrassing me.
Mom
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 05:49 PM
Damn it! Win out!!
Posted by: Jack | November 10, 2012 at 05:56 PM
We'll see what we've got left, but have to figure our goal is be bowl elidigeble so we can take the self imposed ban.
Posted by: longtimecanefan | November 10, 2012 at 05:21 PM
I concur. Our goal is to be bowl edible so we can take the self imposed ban.
Posted by: nemo2002 | November 10, 2012 at 06:00 PM
If Miami keeps playing like this, ABC Liquor is going to add me to there mailing list and send me a "Thank You" card for the purchases I have been making.
Posted by: raizecane | November 10, 2012 at 06:31 PM
man this one hurt. the canes looked like they did against boston in some aspects. not having dp, ej really hurt, rs did also. i hope those players that were suspended understand how their actions don't just affect them. cant be selfish and win ships.
Posted by: trianglecane | November 10, 2012 at 06:34 PM
If Miami keeps playing like this, ABC Liquor is going to add me to there mailing list and send me a "Thank You" card for the purchases I have been making.
Posted by: raizecane | November 10, 2012 at 06:31 PM
LMAO. Hell, they're going to have to pay for my liver transplant.
Posted by: CaneRock | November 10, 2012 at 06:36 PM
i do believe in the process tho.. I will continue to wear my orange and green hoodie, and have people look at me side ways..GO CANES!!!
Posted by: trianglecane | November 10, 2012 at 06:42 PM